White Aura
by AllHailMario
Summary: Seraph is a Lucario and part of Steel Whole, a small Pokemon fighting "school." When a Lucario named Geode and his misguided band of individuals tears the unity of the school apart, Seraph winds up fighting for not just those he loves, but the world.
1. Chapter 1: Testing Day

Aura:

It's the life force dominating the planet. Every living being emits it; some are just more sensitive to it. With enough skill and practice, you can control your own aura. This gives you special gifts and abilities that set you apart from the rest. You can feel the presence of every creature around you. You can read the flow of thought from your enemies and decipher what they're thinking next. You can become untouchable in battle.

Some Pokemon are born sensitive to aura. Quite a few can sense it in some form or another, but a select few can control it from birth. Riolu and Lucario are two such Pokemon, but there are others.

Whether aura is used for good or evil depends on the user. It doesn't distinguish between right and wrong; because of this, those angry at the world can vent their wrath in terrible ways. But some who are noble can use it to counteract these actions and save the land from certain destruction.

Such a story is this. It is a story between the struggles of one Pokemon's burning ire at life and another Pokemon's desire to soothe the flames of war and save all living creatures from misery. Delve into the aura and all the mysteries it holds.

--

"You are ready?" Saiwing asked.

Seraph's answer was to settle into a fighting stance, which was light and loose to remain fast but still full of enough power to knock the wind out of a Steel-type. As a Lucario, he preferred to flow from one move to another, almost as if dancing; that was typical among his species.

The Pokemon he was preparing to challenge in a fight was Saiwing, a Scizor. While most Scizor had traded in their speed for power and defense, Saiwing was still fast enough to block and avoid almost every move thrown at him. Seraph himself had hit him only a few times in all his years of training, and he was considered one of the better fighters in their school.

Their "school," called the Steel Whole, consisted of four students and one master--Saiwing. It taught Pokemon how to engage smartly in combat rather than mindlessly abusing their individual attacks as so many other Pokemon did. Not many schools like this existed, as few Pokemon took the time to slow down and learn melee. Their school was no building, but rather a large and spacious cave set in a hill. A hole at the top of the hill allowed those who lived inside to climb out and practice out in the open air, as Seraph and Saiwing were doing now. The hill sat somewhere in western Kanto, although since Seraph had no knowledge of any human settlements and where they were, he couldn't pinpoint their exact location. It really didn't matter a whole lot to Pokemon, anyway.

While Saiwing was not actually a Fighting-type--most Pokemon fighting schools expected everyone involved to be one--he was unbelievably skilled. While he never specifically mentioned where he learned such battle prowess, nobody bothered to ask, and so it remained hidden. Their school wasn't called "Steel Whole" just because Saiwing was part Steel; he believed in turning your various attributes to steel. In fact, the school's unofficial motto was, "Steel in strength. Steel in courage. Steel in mind. Steel in spirit. Take every good quality you possess and make it hard as iron." He even had an "iron" personality. The last time anybody could describe him as actually happy was probably years ago. He may have been firm and serious, but he still slowed down enough to understand each one of his students and care for their individual needs and desires.

The three other students were Luna, Hammerfist (or Ham), and Gore. Luna was a Gallade and Seraph's closest friend. Just a few months after Seraph had started training at Steel Whole, Luna had shown up, already a Gallade despite being barely over a year old at the time. Seraph himself wasn't even a year old then, meaning Luna was a few months older than he was. That was four years ago. Luna was usually calm and polite, as most Gallade were, and, it seemed, barely had a sense of humor. If a joke was told that made everybody in the room laugh uproariously, Luna was likely to smile a little but leave it at that. After some training at Steel Whole, it was revealed that, once he learned how to use aura, he was quite good at it. His skill didn't reach Seraph's, seeing as he wasn't born a Lucario--or Riolu--as he was, but he was still the second-best, better even than Saiwing (who had mastered only some of his aura).

Hammerfist was a Machoke, and also a bit of a klutz. His father was a Machamp and his mother a Machoke, and both made fighting their lives. Naturally, Ham wanted to please them and participated in many battles from an early age. When he was about four and had just evolved into a Machoke, he joined Steel Whole. He was usually energetic and optimistic, but hopelessly dense. Nonetheless, he was a skilled fighter and a valuable asset to the team. He was also considered their mascot.

Gore was a Nidoking and the oldest of everyone there aside from Saiwing. Brutal and gruff, he was lacking in manners, even to their master (though he was never outright rude to any of them). He joined apparently when he was about fourteen or fifteen. While that wouldn't even reach maturity for humans, Pokemon matured much faster but could often live just as long, so by a Pokemon's reckoning, Gore was nowhere near young. Snippets of his past were occasionally caught in conversation. His family had faced quite a bit of hardship of some sort and he was separated from them at an early age, which forced him to grow up quicker even than most other Pokemon. So many years later, the result was a hardened and surly warrior. He lacked the speed that the other students possessed, but was still fast and skilled enough to prove more than a match for most who came his way.

Seraph didn't remember a lot about his parents. He was very young, not even a month old, when he was separated from them. He could remember vague blurs that he knew were details of his past, but he couldn't connect them all to make much sense. He remembered them naming him Seraph after the fact that his aura was strangely pure white, like an angel. After that, he remembered being in complete sadness and misery for awhile, but then a human woman--he couldn't remember what she looked or sounded like, but good cooking always reminded him of her--took care of him and made him joyous and grateful. Later, he was out in the wild, fending for himself, and Saiwing found him and added him as a member of the Steel Whole. He didn't concern himself much over events of the past. If he didn't remember most of it, then he couldn't miss what he didn't have.

Four years of training with both physical combat and aura had made Seraph a force to be reckoned with. Every so often, Saiwing would command one of his students to battle him atop the hill to see just how far they had progressed. Never had anyone beaten him, but it was Saiwing's wish for every one of his students to surpass him. Each time they fought, Seraph hoped this time would be that moment.

"Of course," the Scizor remarked at his student's response. "I want you to show me what you've learned."

As soon as the last word left his mouth, Seraph bounded forward with blinding speed and aimed a kick at Saiwing's head. The metallic bug blocked it with one pincer and jerked the other one around for a solid punch. Seraph had learned that old maneuver the hard way and rolled in midair around it to dodge it. Instinctively, he kicked backwards after landing in case Saiwing was planning a quick attack. When he felt his foot collide on metal, he followed it up with two punches and a kick--all of which were blocked--and then knocked Saiwing's hook out of the way. He followed the hook down, spun around next to him, grabbed his arm, and threw a kick at his chest. Before he could retract his leg, his master grabbed it and twisted it, forcing Seraph to fall belly-first to the ground. Improvising quickly, he made use of his position and performed a scissor kick, attempting to trip Saiwing up, but his master merely jumped nimbly over it and hurled Seraph at the tree resting at the edge of the hill. Before he could bash himself against the tree, he landed with his legs on it, then kicked off.

Halfway through the air, he summoned his aura, which glowed white like fire on his wrists, and launched a few quick "fireballs" at Saiwing, who knocked them aside by creating barriers using his own aura, which was a bluish-purple color. As the Scizor blocked the last one, Seraph tried two rapid midair kicks in succession, but both were blocked. Flipping backwards off of the steel hands, he allowed himself to sense Saiwing's aura, which might give away his opponent's next move. As Saiwing generally went on instinct rather than thinking about his next move, it was much harder to read than the life energies of others. He knew there were subtle changes; he just didn't quite know how to read them. He sensed his opponent preparing a series of quick strikes, for which Seraph prepared himself for.

Upon opening his eyes, he was greeted with the sight of a red blur dashing at him. This didn't surprise him, as he was expecting it all along, and blocked the first punch with his hand while still in midair. He knocked the second punch inwards, now on the ground, which got in the way of the third punch; however, Saiwing lost no momentum and followed it up with a flurry of kicks, and when his hands were no longer tangled up, punches. After a few seconds, instincts and aura failed the Lucario, and he was hit in the gut. A second punch got him in the side of the face, and finally a kick in the chest sent him hurtling off the edge of the hill. He latched onto the side, not wanting to fall. Saiwing stood over him, untouched as always. Seraph knew that steel didn't sweat, but there was no hint of exhaustion or fatigue on the crimson warrior.

"You need to use your aura more," Saiwing admonished. That was exactly what Seraph had been thinking, gripping onto the grassy hill, and he hated how knowing what he _should_ have done always came right after he did it. "You've been born with a gift stronger than any of ours. You need to learn to use it."

Seraph spat out a small bit of blood. He remembered rule number one in his mental notebook: _Getting hit by metal hurts._ Seraph may have been part Steel himself, but it wasn't immediately obvious like with a Scizor's.

"That's enough for today. Let's go back down and cool off."

"I can still practice," Seraph protested, climbing back up.

"No, you've done enough. I hit you full power with those blows, which is something I usually don't do. You and the other students may be much more used to pain, but your body can still break. And besides, you need more training before we fight again. You still haven't learned to use your born talent yet."

Seraph slumped inwardly at the blow to his pride, but recognized that it was true and knew better than to deny or justify it. Nobody could improve with that mindset. Instead, he said, "Yes, Master," and followed him back down the hole to their cave.


	2. Chapter 2: Winds of Fate

The home of Steel Whole - the cave set in the hill - was about fifty feet long and consisted of two "floors," which had been formed naturally and not as a result of the group's tinkering. In general, the "upstairs" portion was the sleeping and personal area, while the bottom level was reserved for eating, talking, training, and overall the members' social life.

Not a great deal of light entered the cave, so they had been forced to make a few windows of their own...in other words, by blowing out holes in the walls. They had been forbidden from creating holes near the ceiling or anywhere somebody could walk. It could be dangerous if, during training atop the hill, somebody wasn't paying attention and stuck their foot through a hole. Light also entered from the two exits. The big one, the actual mouth of the cave, was at the front of the hill, which was a cliff. The second was a considerably smaller outlet on the second floor which led to the top of the hill. The top could also be accessed by simply walking up the backside of the hill.

The first floor held a small pool for bathing and a small stream which they got their water from (it took awhile for Hammerfist to get the two right, which caused Steel Whole a lot of grief beforehand). Food generally consisted of fruits, veggies, and berries, which were kept in a basket in the corner. The rest of the space was pretty much empty, although there were a few games and devices stored away in various places.

Seraph and Saiwing reentered the Cave through the second floor opening, brushing aside the hanging vines as they did so. Hammerfist, munching on an apple down below, raised his hand in greeting.

"So how'd training go, Seraph?" he called up. When he noticed the bit of blood coming from the corner of Seraph's mouth, he added, "Is that Master Saiwing's, or yours? Did you actually land a punch on him? Or did you just trip and-"

"Mine," Seraph grunted. "And I didn't trip."

"He's doing better," Saiwing commented, "but if he learned how to use his aura, I'd be unable to touch him. As it is, my own aura alone could overpower his. For the time being, Seraph, work on honing your aura. It's not a tool at your disposal. It's a part of you, just like an arm or a leg."

He had heard this line a million times, and he resisted the urge to say, "I know." As it was, he was tired, sore, and frustrated. This combination dulled the proverbial warning system in his conscience, causing him to say and do things he normally wouldn't, especially to his master.

"Where did you learn your aura, anyway?" he muttered. "I thought Scizor weren't supposed to have any."

The subject of the origin of Saiwing's aura was something that had only been asked once. The only answer they received was, "From an old acquaintance of mine who taught me the basics. I would prefer not to speak on that now." Since then, everyone guessed it was better to leave it alone, and although Saiwing hadn't actually said he was touchy about it, it had gradually become a taboo subject. In his frustration, Seraph had crossed a line laid down by the other members of the group. Still, he wasn't sorry for asking it. Lucario were born with the ability to manipulate aura easily, and the fact that a mostly physical-fighter outdid him was annoying.

Luckily, Hammerfist hadn't overheard the undertone, or he probably would have turned and stared at them with his usual dumbfounded expression.

"You're right," Saiwing replied in a voice just as low. "Most Scizor don't. I wasn't born with any myself. I had to learn it."

"Yeah, but from whom? And how? How do you know all this?"

Saiwing paused for a moment. "You know the story of Geode by now, right?" Seraph nodded. "It was him. Willingly or unwillingly, he taught me the basics. From there, I expanded on it myself. He was so angry and reckless back then..."

Long silence followed as Saiwing fell into old memories and Seraph fell deep into thought. Every so often, Saiwing had retold the story of Geode, but now only made the occasional reference to it. Up until now, Seraph hadn't realized the two Pokemon had actual known each other that much.

Geode was another Lucario. According to Saiwing, he was a rather unsavory character whom he had called "an individual you would not like to share a room with." Geode was reticent, to-the-point, unforgiving, and, above all, ruthless. He was obsessed with becoming stronger for a reason only he knew. Saiwing had frequently instructed Steel Whole that getting stronger was not really a matter of increasing your power, but of learning when and where to use it. Geode had no such views. Apparently, he had learned to fight (and kill) by taking on nearby Pokemon rather than learning from a master or training peacefully with a group. Saiwing had met Geode "a few times" but never elaborated on those encounters. Seraph wondered if they had fought before.

Recently, it seemed Geode wasn't up to much, but there were rumors he had picked up some friends. Or, rather, tools, as Saiwing had once explained. They were not a "school" of fighting like Steel Whole was, but rather just a group led by Geode whose intentions were less than noble. Most of them were power-hungry ruffians who had decided to cast their lot in with Geode. Saiwing had warned Steel Whole to try and avoid conflict with these Pokemon at any cost. Geode didn't accept weaklings, it was said. Most of them had changed their names to something else, apparently in honor of their leader. Saiwing had discovered once that "Geode" was not his actual name, but rather a chosen name. Why he had decided to go with that title, nobody quite knew.

Saiwing had instructed the members of Steel Whole to leave Geode to him if he ever appeared and decided to fight. Since nobody in Steel Whole could figure out why their leader was "just that awesome," as Hammerfist had put it, the fact that Saiwing feared Geode meant a lot to them. He had even told them to leave him should he be defeated. Thinking on it and considering his nature and personality, Seraph wasn't sure he could do that. He didn't think most of the members would, either.

"So, Geode was the one who taught you to use aura?" Seraph asked after a period of silence. "You used to be his pupil?"

"Pupil? No. He merely hinted at what to do, and after enough practice I succeeded in creating a tiny blue flame. I did more research and training after that to get me at the level I am now. Even so, your potential is infinitely higher than mine."

"What about Geode?" said Seraph. His stress had long since dissipated. "How good is he at controlling aura?"

Saiwing sighed. "Enough to send every one of you flying backwards with a wave of his hand. Remember, we are in different circumstances. You train periodically to learn how to defend yourself and those around you. You are not fighting for your life day in and day out, you do not constantly fear attack, and you don't have very much experience. Geode dedicated his entire life to getting stronger. Nearly every minute he spent awake, he was training, both physically and with aura. And I don't think he'll stop until he's positive he's the strongest one in the world. He's also been around longer than you."

Saiwing's words disturbed him. "What's his obesession with getting stronger? Why is he so desperate?"

"As I've explained before, I really don't know what drives him. What I'd give to find out, though."

They paused for a few more seconds, thinking about the conversation. The silence was broken by Gore's deep, rumbling voice.

"Hey, Luna's coming back. I can see him coming from a distance."

Hammerfist jumped up, threw away his apple core, and rushed to the exit of the Cave. "Food time! Can you see any leppa berries?"

"No. And I thought you just got finished stuffing your face. Not that that's new or anything."

While Hammerfist and Gore argued, Seraph peered out the mouth of the cave. Sure enough, the hazy figure of Luna, carrying baskets full of fruit, was visible on the horizon. He had been gone on a weekly trip to scavenge more fruits and vegetables from the forest. While they did frequently eat meat (usually by hunting the local wildlife), they lived primarily off of fruit. Luna was usually the one they sent on these errands.

About twenty minutes later, he actually arrived. The baskets were as bountiful as ever. But, unfortunately for Hammerfist...

"No leppa berries!"

"I'm sorry. There weren't any left where I looked."

"Why didn't you look deeper?" the Machoke moaned.

"If you don't like my results, perhaps you can leave on a two-day trip to find food," Luna retorted." And I believe I've warned you that there aren't very many leppa berries trees in the forest. If we take too many of them, the other Pokemon and humans will finish the rest off, and the trees will be bare for awhile."

"Make them bloom faster!"

"You know, Ham," Gore commented, "you're kind of a retard."

"I'm kind of a _what?_"

"Alright," Saiwing said, "that's enough yelling. Your voice is bouncing all over the walls."

Seraph sighed and took two of the baskets from Luna. "Same old, same old, right?"

"Exactly," said Luna, allowing a slight smile. "What happened to your mouth?"

Seraph wiped the blood away and answered, "Testing day. I got hit by Master Saiwing in the face."

"That must have hurt."

"It did."

They put an assortment of the berries into a bowl, then set the baskets in their usual corner. Hammerfist was now glaring at Gore, who was ignoring him but grinning slightly.

"Now that Luna is here," Saiwing announced, "I'd like to bring up a 'field trip' of sorts. Tomorrow, we're going to the edge of the mountain range to practice using the terrain to our advantage. I'm not sure how long it will last - probably only a couple of days - but be prepared then. We leave at sunrise tomorrow. Thankfully, we never have much to pack, so we should be right out the door the moment we get up. Any questions?"

Hammerfist raised his hand. "Why didn't Gore apologize to me?"

With an inscrutable expression, Saiwing turned to the Nidoking and said, "Gore, apologize to him."

A mock smile appeared on Gore's face as he wrapped an arm around Hammerfist's body and pulled him into a bone-crushing one-armed hug. "I'm sorry, Ham and Cheese, old friend of mine."

"You don't mean it! I can tell!"

"Oh, I'm perfectly serious."

"Now," Saiwing continued, "are there any questions related to what I just talked about?"

This time, Luna raised his hand. "What do you mean by 'using the terrain to our advantage'?"

"Every sense of the word," Saiwing elaborated. "Using nearby objects to attack with. Using natural formations to protect yourself, to heal yourself, to do all kinds of things. You'll learn more about it when we get there. Anything else?" When there were no more raised hands, he concluded with, "Good. That's all for now."

The next day, at sunrise, the five of them were packed (lightly, as always) and ready to go.

"This should be a couple of hours at least," Saiwing told them all. "Once we get there, we'll rest a bit, then start training. We'll stop a few times along the way. Now follow me."

They headed north, which took them into increasingly bumpy and rocky territory until the ground was nothing but hard dirt and rock formations. The towering Mt. Moon loomed in the distance. They weren't actually traveling into the mountain range, but stopping just short of it.

"We've gone far enough," Saiwing said after awhile. "Now, we just need to find a place to camp in. Keep your eyes open for possibilities."

Naturally, they hadn't gone more than a few steps when Hammerfist suggested a spot.

"That's on top of a rock formation," Luna corrected. "It's too dangerous and unstable to set up a camp there."

Thirteen steps later, he made another suggestion.

"That's nearby a road where humans pass by," Luna corrected again. "We wouldn't want to risk getting captured. We'll have to find a different spot."

Another twenty steps brought up another suggestion.

"Perhaps you should simply drop it," said Luna flatly.

There were no more ideas from him after that.

Gore was the one who made the final decision on where to stay. There was a flat, smooth area hemmed in by auburn stone walls, which shielded them from view. That area was right next to a clearing where training would be easy. Hammerfist spat his tongue out; the others ignored him.

The bags were set down on a boulder while the five Pokemon entered the clearing, where they rested and stretched out, tired and sore from the journey. The small, metallic wings on Saiwing's back beat rapidly, cooling down his body temperature. Luna took some water and splashed it on his face.

While they were resting, Saiwing began to talk about the strategies and tactics of using the terrain to one's advantage.

"First, we'll practice using simple tactics," he stated. "This, for instance, is a very bumpy and rocky area. Let's say that you, Luna, are facing some large and heavy Pokemon...a Golem, perhaps. While it can see you, it knows how to defend itself. You are significantly faster than it. Take a look around you and tell me how you might get around this advantage."

Luna gazed around the clearing silently. After about twenty seconds, he answered, "Golem usually don't have much defense against special attacks, so if it were me, I would probably use a Psychic-type move on him."

"We aren't talking about a preference of moves. We're talking solely about using the terrain."

There was silence for a bit more. Finally, Luna said slowly, "Perhaps, using my speed, I could move behind one formation of rock to the next, thus confusing my opponent and forcing him to lose track of me. While he was distracted, I could strike." He looked at Saiwing as if hoping for an answer.

Saiwing nodded. "Very good. Now, this doesn't go for everybody. Gore and Hammerfist don't have the speed to pull something like that off. That's when you can use different strategies and techniques, which we'll learn in a moment. We're not going to train just yet, as we need to rest up. Once that happens, I want you, Seraph, to attack Luna, and Luna, I want you to use the strategy you've just discovered. If you can find other tactics to use involving the terrain, feel free to implement them. Now, about the lack of speed with Gore and Hammerfist..."

The talk continued like this for another twenty minutes. By that time, most of them were almost fully recovered from their journey. Seraph wondered when the actual fighting would start. He looked at Luna and grinned. He was eager to test himself against his friend.

"...That's how, even when facing a faster opponent," Saiwing finished saying to Hammerfist, "you can still turn the tables to your advantage. In just a moment, we'll all..."

He let the sentence hang as his eyes fixed on something behind Hammerfist. He sat up straighter and stiffened. Seraph swore he saw a look of fear in his eyes. Everybody turned to see what he was staring at.

Standing atop a very high but thin rock formation was another Lucario. It was gazing down at them all, an almost-bored expression on its face. _Who is that?_ Seraph thought to himself, although he believed he knew the answer and dreaded it.

"It can't be..." Saiwing muttered.

The Lucario hopped down lightly and walked toward them all slowly. Now that it was closer, Seraph could see it more clearly. It was short even for a Lucario. The average height of a Lucario was 3'11" tall. Seraph himself was 4'01", which wasn't huge, but even he seemed to tower over the other, who looked to be about 3'06" or 3'07".

"Master Saiwing, who's that?" Hammerfist asked, leaning over.

"Geode," he replied. "That Pokemon is Geode."

Hushed fear settled over their group. Walking toward them was the Pokemon often referenced as cold, heartless, and willing to kill just to prove himself. It was like meeting a legend, only knowing it was the last thing you'd ever meet.

"Is this your group?" Geode asked. Despite his size, he still had the typical deep voice of a Lucario.

"Yes, this is Steel Whole," said Saiwing. "It's been awhile since I've seen you."

"I was around," Geode stated, "so I decided to choose you next."

"Choose me next?" the Scizor repeated. "That's a very vague statement. Also a very ominous one. I'm still aware of what you've done and what you are."

"If you knew what I was," the Lucario said, "you'd understand why I do what I do. As it is, I'm not interested in your group. I came here for you." He was now within ten feet of them, where he stopped.

Saiwing stood up and looked around. "I don't see your followers. Did you come here without them?"

"No. They're already here. I just haven't told them to reveal themselves. They know better than to act out of turn. Ah, what does it matter? You can all show yourselves!"

They all paused as loud footsteps were heard from the distance. After a few moments, six shapes came into view, most of them large. When they came closer, Seraph could see they were a Toxicroak, Rhydon, Blaziken, Feraligatr, Hitmonlee, and Infernape.

"I sensed six other presences nearby," Saiwing commented, "but somehow I didn't sense you, which is especially odd seeing how good you are with aura. How long have you been watching us?"

"For the last half hour."

"So you've figured out a way to mask your life force?" Saiwing asked.

"Yes. You and I are going to battle."

Saiwing sighed. "You know my views on senseless battle."

"And you know mine. There is no worming your way out of this."

"Could we at least take the fight somewhere else? I don't want any of my students involved in this."

Geode glanced at them all. "If they were really so strong, they wouldn't have a problem with it. Are they really so useless?"

"You take that back, Fuzzball!" Hammerfist yelled, putting a foot forward. Seraph's heart nearly skipped a beat upon hearing the sentence, and Luna closed his eyes solemnly.

Geode glanced at the angry Machoke with the same serious expression he had worn the entire time. He slowly lifted his arm towards Hammerfist. He flicked out his index digit. Immediately, Hammerfist exploded into blue flames and was launched into a rock wall. Gore dodged out of the way just in time.

_We have to go up against _that_!_ Seraph thought. _Plus his cronies!_

"Fine, we'll take this somewhere else," Geode agreed. He began to walk away with Saiwing following him.

"Wait, Geode!" the Rhydon called out. "What about us? Can't we, you know, have some fun while you're gone?"

Geode turned his head back slightly. "Whatever. Do what you want. But we're leaving as soon as I return."

"We should be done by then," the Toxicroak said, grinning and rubbing his claws.

_They want a fight,_ Seraph thought to himself. _And we have no choice, either. Just as Saiwing mentioned before, most of these guys are just power-hungry freaks. It's amazing how power can corrupt._

"The four of you be careful," Saiwing yelled over his shoulder. Then he and Geode dashed off in a blur.

Which left Steel Whole outnumbered by large and battle-starved Pokemon 6-4. Hammerfist had just taken a big hit, too. Seraph prepared himself as the six enemies closed in on them.


	3. Chapter 3: Blitz

_The secret to learning true power comes not from achieving great strength, but from learning when and where to use it._

Saiwing had told Steel Whole this message over and over again - they considered it their motto. The menacing group approaching them, however, had either not heard this message or didn't care for it. Luna said as much to them, obviously trying to avoid a fight. They were outnumbered, and the odds were stacked against them.

"We don't buy that feel-good philosophical stuff," the Hitmonlee explained. "True power comes from true power. Don't let anybody tell you different. Master Geode knows this, and notice nobody can stand up to him."

An explosion of blue aura shook the sky on Seraph's left. He swallowed. Surely Saiwing wouldn't go down easily.

"It would appear Geode has gathered like-minded individuals," said Luna. "Is there really no dissuading you from this?"

The Feraligatr answered by lunging forward and biting. Luna hopped out of range and raised his hands in a defensive gesture.

"Oooh, jumpy one, aren'tcha?" the Feraligatr teased.

"You're female?" Luna wondered aloud.

"I didn't know females could be that scary!" Hammerfist yelled, clinging onto Gore. Gore shoved him off.

"Enough already!" the Toxicroak complained, sharpening his claws. "If none of you Steel Morons are going to play, then I'll make-"

He was interrupted by a kick to the face from Seraph. While the other Pokemon had been arguing, Seraph had gone behind a stone rise, then dashed out with a Quick Attack. The Toxicroak didn't miss a beat and stabbed at him. Seraph flipped in midair to avoid it and slammed his foot down at his enemy's head. The Toxicroak blocked the attack, but before he could retaliate again, Seraph jumped back down.

"If you want a nice sparring lesson, we can give it to you," Seraph told him, "but you're crossing the line here. As for you, Toxicroak, I've had about all I can handle of your muttering. Death by senseless jabber is such a boring way to die."

The Toxicroak glared at him for a bit, but finally smiled. "I think I like this kid. He doesn't waste his breath, as even I do; he just leaps into the fray. I like that style. Everybody, stop looking tough and just fight already!"

The Toxicroak leapt forward at Seraph, but, reading his aura, he sensed that the move was just a ruse to get around his defenses. He knew he was right when his enemy rolled around him and launched a flurry of stabs. He blocked the first few, then jumped backwards to get out of range. To his knowledge, poison from a Toxicroak's claws was extremely deadly. He couldn't risk getting cut, even just a small scratch.

Behind Seraph, the others had erupted into war. Luna was fending off the Feraligatr and Infernape, Hammerfist was dueling the Hitmonlee, and Gore was fighting the Rhydon and Blaziken. Luna could hardly get a single strike in, occupied with fending off so many attacks, but to Seraph's relief he hadn't been hurt. Hammerfist (to his dismay) was being pummeled, and Gore seemed to be on even grounds with his attackers.

Summoning up his aura so that it was visible, he launched a barrage of small "fireballs" at the Toxicroak, who leapt high above them and reared his claw back. Again, Seraph sensed no intent to attack with the jump. _This guy likes to feint a lot. So long as he sticks to that pattern, he shouldn't be too hard to beat._

As soon as the Toxicroak landed behind him, Seraph did a spinning back kick, using the momentum to shove himself into his target's stomach. As he flew backwards, the Toxicroak instinctively let loose a Sludge Bomb. Seraph tilted his body away to avoid it. Seizing his advantage, he leapt forward, preparing a punch. To his surprise, the Toxicroak did the same at blinding speed. Reacting too late, Seraph received a gash across his right shoulder. He looked at the wound with horror. A Toxicroak's poison was typically only lethal to small animals and humans (in moderate doses), but it was potent nonetheless. He knew he didn't have a lot of time before the poison incapacitated him.

"Good ol' Sucker Punch," the Toxicroak teased, raising his fist and wiggling it. "That's what the humans call it. Better be careful when leaping in for the kill."

Furious, Seraph dove at him. The Toxicroak, grinning, used another Sucker Punch. Seraph didn't intend to attack, however; instead, he kicked off the ground and disappeared behind a rock wall, zipping behind obstacles as fast as he could. When his enemy had lost sight of him, Seraph leapt past him and used the spike on the back of his hand to tear into the Toxicroak's backside. He could sense his movements; the once-sneering Pokemon was getting desperate. Seraph detected what he could only describe as a 'cord snapping' in the Toxicroak's conscience, who, seconds later, ran behind one of the rock walls, giving chase. _Idiot. He's not eliminating his sitting-duck-status - he's making it easier for me._ Seraph wound his way to the Toxicroak's spot, charged up an Aura Sphere, and slammed his hand into the small of his target's back, letting the sphere fly. The poisonous Pokemon was blasted into a rock arch some distance away and lay limp.

"Looks like you could've used a bit of our terrain training," Seraph spat.

Even as he looked at his fallen foe, his vision blurred and he became dizzy. The poison was spreading quickly. _Please tell me we packed pecha berries._ Clutching his wounded shoulder, he ran as fast as he could without falling over to where they left their bags. Halfway there, he collapsed. He felt sick, and every time he made a move to get up, he felt like he might vomit. After ten agonizing seconds, strong arms picked him up and carried him behind a large rock wall, away from the battle.

"Geez, Seraph! Are you alright?" came Hammerfist's voice.

"I've been poisoned," he croaked.

"Poisoned?" Hammerfist cried. "No! It can't end this way! You have to hold on, Seraph!"

"Ham..."

"I'll always remember the good times we shared together, the battles we fought! You taught me so much!"

"Ham, listen - "

"Your death will not be in vain! Who did this to you, Seraph? I swear on my mother's grave, if she had one - "

"I'm not dying, Ham!" Seraph yelled. Actually, he was, but he was in no imminent danger, and Hammerfist needed to shut up. "A pecha berry. Just give me a pecha berry."

"I shall honor your last request," Hammerfist choked, tears streaming down his face.

"It's not my last request, you blockhead!" Seraph shouted as Hammerfist stood up and walked toward the bags. He supposed it didn't matter either way, just so long as he got the pecha berry. The berries were known for curing virtually any poison instantly.

A few moments later, Hammerfist returned with a pecha berry, a solemn expression on his face.

"I'm sorry it has to be this way," Hammerfist muttered.

Seraph ignored him and ate the berry. His vision quickly started to clear up, and his nausea went away. He sat up slowly and stretched out. "What happened to the Hitmonlee you were fighting?"

"Luna blew him apart with a psychic move."

"Literally or metaphorically?"

"What's the difference?"

"Never mind, Ham. I'm going back to the battle."

"But you're dying!"

"No, I'm not. Just go wrestle with one of the others."

Seraph growled as the Machoke ran off. Of all the times for his childish naiveté to get in the way...

Observing the battle scene, he learned more about the enemy fighters. By the looks of things, they hadn't actually been trained at all - they relied more on their unique abilities and moves than fundamental combat. He now knew exactly what Saiwing meant when he said his followers were nothing more than a gang of power zealots. He hadn't offered to train them. They had simply joined on under the premise of growing stronger and feeling superior.

A tall Pokemon appeared next to him. It was the Blaziken. Seraph turned to him cautiously.

"Are you feeling well?" the Blaziken asked.

"Yeah, actually. No offense, but it doesn't look like your lot's very skilled compared to ours. The most I got was a scratch from that Toxicroak, and I just healed the poison."

"Good," the Blaziken replied. "Master Geode and I both share the same goal; being the strongest. I hope you'll find me much more interesting than the others - I have a much deeper level of dedication to the art."

"Art?"

"The Art of Power. That's what Master Geode refers to it as."

Seraph personally didn't care whether the fight was boring or not. He just wanted it to be over. The whole scenario was ridiculous - a group of seven attacked a group of five simply for being there. He was also worried about Saiwing. He couldn't ignore the numerous explosions and bursts of light that came from the distance, and the majority of them were of Geode's doing.

"Why don't you all just go home?" Seraph said after a period of silence. "Fighting here obviously wasn't a good idea. What's your obsession with power that you would go this far? More importantly, what's Geode's obsession with power?"

"I couldn't tell you," the Blaziken replied. "He doesn't tell us much. I stick with him because I know he's the way to power."

"So what's your obsession?"

"That I'd rather keep to myself."

Seraph used his aura to sense what was going on in the rest of the battle. Gore was down, having taken a beating from the Rhydon. On the other side, the Toxicroak was up - wobbly, but up - and the Hitmonlee wasn't moving at all. The Rhydon, Infernape, and Feraligatr had hemmed in Luna and Hammerfist, but all five had taken a lot of damage. Seraph realized with frustration that he'd done little else than stand around and talk.

"One more question before we fight," Seraph said quickly. "What do we call you guys? Who are we beating up?"

"We've discarded our real names," the Blaziken explained. "I am called Burn. The Rhydon is Crush. The Feraligatr's Rend, the Hitmonlee's Break, the Toxicroak is Sting, and the Infernape is Stab. We're all named for the ways we defeat our opponents."

_Clever._

Without wasting time, Seraph swung his hand sideways, releasing a crescent of aura. Burn leapt over it easily. Seraph had to crane his neck upward to see him properly. The crescent was followed up by a flurry of fireballs, which he forced to explode when they came near Burn. The Blaziken would either use aerial dynamics to dodge the attacks or block them with fire. Before Burn hit the ground, Seraph jumped up and prepared to hit him with the same attack he'd briefly incapacitated Sting with, charging up the Aura Sphere in his hand. A fiery leg crashed down on him, changing his plans. Unable to move away in time, he blocked the kick with his Aura Sphere. The power of the kick and the recoil sent him shooting into the ground. Stars burst before his eyes. Burn ricocheted off the sphere and landed safely on top of a rock wall.

_He really is better than the rest,_ thought Seraph. _He's going easy on me, I can sense it. I can't hold back on him._

Saiwing had explained about the "Mental Power Wall" occasionally. According to him, everybody held back in a fight instinctively as a defensive tactic. Breaching the Power Wall meant going all out, and going all out usually meant ignoring one's well-being, albeit gaining maximum fighting prowess in the process.

He stood up in the miniature crater he'd left and summoned as much aura as he could muster up, giving him the appearance of being on white fire. Using a Quick Attack, he burst from the ground and attacked every opening he could find on his target. Burn blocked them all and countered with a Blaze Kick, knocking Seraph backwards. Seraph flipped back into position and fired a beam of aura, which Burn dodged by jumping off the rock and shooting Embers. Seraph deflected them by concentrating the aura to his hands, then sped back to his foe and continued his rapid attack. This time he filled his hands with aura and released it with every strike. The aura proved too much for the Blaziken and blew him off a rocky slope. Seraph, abandoning defense, jumped down with him and slammed his fist into the ground where Burn had been a second ago, creating a shock wave. Burn leaped over it, still dazed somewhat from the attack, and used Flamethrower.

The attack was easy enough to dodge, but he sensed Hammerfist and Luna were in trouble. Turning his back on Burn, he jumped back up the slope and ran to his comrades' position. Reading Burn's movements behind him, he realized his enemy was about to use a Quick Attack and Blaze Kick combo. As soon as Burn made the move, Seraph rolled backwards. Halfway through the roll, he pushed himself off the ground and aimed a kick at his enemy's stomach. Burn, however, tilted, grabbed his leg, and threw him back to the earth. Seraph wasn't able to react quickly enough to respond appropriately and slammed into the ground full force. Burn followed the attack up with another Blaze Kick, pushing Seraph deeper into the ground.

"Your friends have their own matters to deal with," said Burn. "I said I wanted a fair, one-on-one fight with you, didn't I?"

"Fair my butt," Seraph growled, slicing his spike into Burn's leg. The Blaziken hopped off of him, bending down and squeezing his bleeding ankle. "We never wanted this fight anyway. We have every right to pull off underhanded tricks until you leave."

Toughing out his pain, he stood up and continued back to where Luna and Hammerfist were. Ham was on the ground, struggling to get back to his feet. Luna stood over him, guarding him until he was ready to fight again. The Gallade had suffered numerous cuts, including one above his right eye which forced him to shut it closed, and slumped to the side slightly. To Seraph's relief, the three enemies were in similar condition, and Sting was now down for the count just like Break, the Hitmonlee.

Crush hadn't seen Seraph approaching, which gave him a perfect opportunity to Metal Claw him in the back. Flipping over him, he charged up an Aura Sphere and launched it into Crush's chest, knocking him back. He could tell the fight was over for him.

"Thank you," Luna panted.

"Don't worry, I've brought company," Seraph said, dodging a Flamethrower from Burn on cue. He jumped, kick Rend across the face, and turned in midair to block a strike from Burn. He instantly felt strikes on his back. It was Stab, the Infernape. _Why didn't I sense him? The fighting must have worn down my concentration._

He and Burn exchanged blows, each blocking each other's attacks. Only a few seconds later, he became painfully aware of the areas Stab had struck him. It almost felt as if someone had...stabbed him. The pain seemed to penetrate him to the core. _It's only pain,_ he reminded himself. _Nothing serious. Just pain...don't let it bother you._

With his focus more on his sore back and less on his opponent, he failed to see the kick aimed at the side of his head and was knocked against a rock arch. A few seconds later, he had the sensation of waking up. He saw Luna dodge a swipe from Rend and kick her away. He trotted over to Seraph, got down on one knee, and yelled, "Are you alright, Seraph?"

"What happened?"

"I think you went unconscious for a moment."

"Yeah, I'm fine. What about Ham?"

"He's back on his feet. He can hold them off, but not for long. Do you need anything? An oran berry?"

"A fat lot of good that'll do me at this point." He stood up slowly. "I'll handle Burn - the Blaziken. After that, I want to check on Master Saiwing."

He saw the disagreement in Luna's eyes, but he didn't protest. Stretching, the Gallade rejoined the fight, focusing his effort on Stab. Burn walked to Seraph and waited for him to stand up. Seraph got to his feet and looked him in the eye. His fighting spirit seemed to have gone. If only he could ignite it again...

_If I don't beat this pious moron, I'm not going anywhere._

The thought made him angry.

Contrasting his exhausted appearance, his first move was very sudden. While Burn was caught off guard, Seraph swept his legs out from under him, grabbed him, and threw him against the same rock wall he'd sat against moments before. Before he lost his advantage, he pressed his attack and punched Burn in every open area. The Blaziken kicked him off and stooped over, panting. Seraph knew he'd done quite some damage to him.

Behind him, he sensed Rend lunging past Luna and towards him. Seraph prepared an aura-filled strike. If he could time it right...

Hammerfist jumped between them and left himself wide open. Rend tore into his chest with her claws, spraying blood. Hammerfist then did something she did not expect; he grabbed her attacking arm before it could do any fatal damage, turned, and threw her off the slope Seraph had come from, where she bounced into a rock wall. She didn't move after that. _She's totally unconscious._ Seconds later, Hammerfist dropped to the ground, unconscious as well.

A towering pillar of blue aura erupted in the battlefield far behind Seraph. The fight between Saiwing and Geode was still going on. Who was winning? Did Saiwing have a chance?

"Go," Luna encouraged. "I think I can handle these two. Just don't do anything reckless."

Nodding to him, Seraph turned and bounded up the hillside. Luna jumped in the way of Burn, preventing him from following.

"I hope I won't be too long," he muttered to himself.

He stopped at the top of the hill, which ended in a cliff of decent size. In the wide area below, two figures were facing each other, standing fifty feet apart from one another. On the left was Saiwing, who was torn up and bloody. On the right was the expressionless Geode, who didn't appear to have so much as stubbed his toe by accident.

Saiwing dashed behind Geode in a blur, surprising for one made of heavy steel, and stabbed at the Lucario's head, filling his pincer with aura. Geode shifted his head out of the way nonchalantly and hit Saiwing in the stomach. It appeared to be a weak hit, but Saiwing went flying to nearly the other end of the small valley. Another Lucario caught him before he went too far. But that didn't make sense - another Lucario? There had only been one. Seraph checked the spot where Geode was, but he had vanished.

That was impossible. Nobody could move that fast. Nobody.

The other Lucario (who Seraph had to grudgingly admit was Geode) muttered something to Saiwing, then lifted up his hand to the Scizor's chest. A sphere of aura launched from his hand, carrying Saiwing with it. The blast carried him far away, into one of the mountains, _through_ the mountain... Seraph's heart seemed to drop into his feet. His own master had been defeated and knocked out of his sensing radius.

He jumped from the cliff and ran as fast as he could towards the cave the aura blast had left. Geode appeared in front of him, cutting him off. Seraph punched forward immediately, but missed hopelessly. _I couldn't have missed by that much. I punched right at his head._ Geode had moved so fast even Seraph couldn't track it.

"Move!" Seraph shouted.

"I advise you to get out of here," Geode warned. "Your master has been defeated. Don't bother looking for him."

"Why did you do it?" Seraph yelled. "If you wanted a fight, why not just ask nicely?"

"I don't do things that way. I'll only say it once more. Take your friends and leave."

He hesitated. He wanted to find Saiwing as soon as possible, but he wasn't about to delude himself into thinking he could overpower Geode by sheer guts. He let his mind remain somewhat blank so that his decisions would be harder to read.

Reacting on an impulse, he lunged forward. Geode caught him by the chest and threw him back. "If you will not leave by your own volition," said Geode, "I'll force you to retreat."

The short Lucario began glowing. His aura density was so thick, it nearly overwhelmed Seraph's senses. Realizing he would die if he stayed any longer, he got to his feet and ran back to the cliff. He jumped to the top of it, feeling the aura's density growing even stronger, and sought out Luna. All of Geode's followers were gone.

"What's going on?" Luna asked.

"We're about to get blown up, that's what! Grab Ham and let's get out of here!"

"What about Master Saiwing?"

"He's not even in the vicinity, Luna. There's nothing we can do."

They exchanged despaired glances, but Luna got the message and ran toward Hammerfist. Gore was on his feet, though barely conscious. Seraph told him what was happening and helped him run, careful not to touch Gore's poison barbs.

_I'm right behind you,_ Luna told him mentally.

Luna's aura manipulation was not as good as Saiwing's, but he was the third best in Steel Whole. Private communication between Seraph and Luna via telepathy was common. Seraph sent him back an affirmation and kept supporting Gore, his muscles straining.

A few moments later, Geode's aura suddenly expanded. The landscape was bathed in blinding blue light before it was all annihilated. Seraph and Gore dove behind a large boulder for cover. Luna, without nearby shelter, threw up a Protect shield to block the impact.

When the light faded and the rumbling stopped, Seraph peeked out from behind what was left of his boulder. The landscape had been completely changed. The hills, slopes, and cliffs that had composed their battlefield were reduced to nothing more than a low, bumpy, charred rock face. The outskirts of the blast formed ripples in the ground where the aura had expanded outward. Boulders and arches had collapsed. There was abundant destruction of the terrain as far as he could see.

"Thanks a gazillion, Luna," Hammerfist muttered.

"Is he going to follow us?" Luna asked, looking in Seraph's direction.

Seraph concentrated his aura. "No. I don't even sense him. I think he's letting us go."

"What do we do about Master Saiwing?"

Seraph sighed. "We're in no condition to search, and Geode may come back to hinder us. I hate to leave him, but we should go back to the base."

The others nodded slowly. It was hard to believe the events of the day had even transpired. What had started as a pleasant training experience had turned into a violent nightmare. Seraph helped Gore back to his feet, and they started the long journey back home.


	4. Chapter 4: Shattered Whole

"We're going to die, aren't we?" Ham moaned.

"No," Luna sighed. Hammerfist had been pessimistic ever since arriving back at the hill. "By the sound of things, Geode was after Master Saiwing. What happened afterwards was a side-effect of his followers' violent natures. I doubt they'll come looking for us again."

Seraph pressed his hand against the small of his back and rubbed cold water in it. He, along with the rest of Steel Whole, were completely and utterly sore. Gore sat in the bathing water, the most beat down of them all. Luna sat leaning against a wall, hunched over from exhaustion. Ham was sprawled on his back, staring at the ceiling.

"What about Master Saiwing?" Ham asked, raising his head some.

"What about him?" Gore grunted.

"Is he alright? What are we going to do about him?"

Gore snorted. "Anybody that could defeat Saiwing that easily could destroy all of us in a second. We're not going back until they're far, _far_ away. We're in no condition to fight, anyway."

"So do we just leave him?" Ham asked. He pushed himself to his feet, staggering a little.

"Don't go jumping to conclusions," said Luna. "Master Saiwing may be inferior in skill to Geode, but he's nonetheless powerful...one of the best. He'll survive.

"That said, we don't have much time to waste. If Geode was truly hellbent on Master Saiwing's demise, he may go back to finish the job. As soon as we're able to fight well enough, we should leave in search of him. What did you say happened again, Seraph?"

Seraph shook his head. "I ran to the edge of the battlefield to watch the fight. Master Saiwing was blasted with some sort of high-energy aura beam farther into the mountain range. It would be, uh..." Seraph looked up in thought. "...Northeast, I believe? Yeah, northeast."

"So," Luna continued, "what I propose is that two or three of us go in pursuit of Master Saiwing and bring him back. At least one of us will have to stay behind and man the base, though I'd prefer if two were there. One has to replenish food and supplies, after all." He turned to Seraph. "You can refuse if you like, Seraph, but I believe you should be one to look for Master Saiwing. Your use of aura can help in a multitude of ways."

Seraph gave a small laugh. "You don't have to prod me."

"I didn't think I'd have to." Luna faced Gore and Hammerfist. "Gore, I think you should stay behind. Your injuries were greater than ours, and, in all honesty, you're not as mobile as the rest of us anyway."

Gore rubbed more water onto his leg. "That's for the best, but I still want to settle things with that Feraligatr. Actually, I'd like to settle the score with _all_ of them. I'll stay back and recover, though. I guess my day will come later."

"That leaves me and Hammerfist," said Luna. "It might be best if I stay at the base. I'm more familiar with the locations of the fruits and vegetables we eat. On the other hand, Hammerfist, you're not known for your speed, and there's a chance you might..." The sentence drifted into obscurity. Luna cleared his throat and continued. "Seraph and I can also communicate back and forth using telepathy. For these reasons, it might be best if I accompanied him."

"I don't understand," Hammerfist asked Gore. "What was he going to say for the second reason?"

"Perhaps that's not - " Luna began.

"He thinks if you stay home, your bunglings may occur on a less catastrophic scale," Gore responded, scooping water into his hands and turning away.

Hammerfist shrugged. "Okay."

"You don't know what any of that means, do you?" Gore muttered, looking over his shoulder.

"Nope."

"Didn't think so."

Luna ignored their conversation and faced Seraph. "Do you think you can be ready to leave by tomorrow morning?"

Seraph nodded. "I'm not that hurt. A little sleep and I'll be fine. I can leave sooner if you like."

Luna gave him his small but warm smile. "How about whenever the two of us are ready and rested, then?"

"Perfect."

"Just don't push yourself too hard. We need to be in...near peak condition when we leave. No later than tomorrow morning, though."

Seraph looked out the main entrance. He guessed it was in the early afternoon. If he rested well enough, he'd be ready to leave by evening. He felt uncomfortable just sitting around. In such times, he needed to occupy himself and make himself feel useful. The more he did, the sooner the problem would resolve itself.

"Well," Luna grunted, standing up slowly, "I'll pack supplies and make plans. You go ahead and rest. We don't have much time to lose."

"I'll help!" Hammerfist volunteered, limping over. "Just tell me what needs doing!"

Luna looked doubtful, but he accepted Hammerfist's offer. "In that case, can you gather, maybe, fourteen apples and put them in a bag? Bring them here when you're done."

Hammerfist nodded eagerly, turned around, and fell on his face, trying to run with a limp too quickly.

"This is _why_ you're staying here," Gore grunted.

With the others taking care of packing, Seraph walked slowly up to the second floor, found his bed of grass and leaves, and lay limp in it. He wished he could do more, but he would be a very valuable asset on the two-man team. His aura could detect enemies - such as Geode and his gang of nuts, for instance - as well as Saiwing's location. If they needed to find an isolated spot to spend the night, his ability to read the auras of other creatures would also come in handy. He remembered how Stab, the Infernape, had snuck up on him so easily. His exhaustion dulled his aura senses. For reasons like that, Seraph had to be well-rested before they left.

He rolled over and glanced over the side of the wall. Hammerfist was running up to Luna, a bag of apples in his hand.

"I brought the apples."

"Thanks, Hammerfist. ...There are only ten apples in here."

"Well, you said _maybe_ fourteen."

Seraph sensed Luna's desire to clobber Hammerfist. "Hammerfist, get four more apples."

The Machoke shrugged and walked away. Seraph rolled back over and smiled wryly to himself. Yes, that was the primary reason old Ham wasn't coming along. He was glad Luna was his partner. The two had connected as soon as they'd met each other and worked well together.

He recalled older days as he began drifting off to sleep. Time seemed to flow by so fast. Before you knew it, four years had gone by...

_The Riolu stumbled over another tree root. The ground around here was so uneven. The forest was as unforgiving as it was helpful. It offered so many shelters, but the world was in a constant state of change and chaos. Climbing into a tree to rest could easily be disrupted by a bigger, gruffer Pokemon climbing up and shoving you off._

_That was another thing the Riolu didn't understand. Why were so many Pokemon so...mean? Some chased him off when he approached them. He just wanted some food. He was weak, not just from starvation, but...it was in his nature. He'd been weak and tired as long as he could remember. He didn't remember that much, either. The Riolu had been elsewhere a month before. It didn't look anything like the forest he was in. It was enclosed. There were no Pokemon, no trees or roots to stumble over. It'd been a pretty miserable existence._

_But somewhere in his memory, the face of a human woman came into view. After all the pain and misery, she'd made his life happier. Who was she? Even her image was blurry._

_The Riolu passed beside a bush and eagerly inspected it, pulling out its branches and extending its leaves. Just green. No berries...? He continued walking, disappointed. He was so hungry..._

_There was light up ahead. The forest was ending. The Riolu didn't know that he wanted to leave the forest. He had no experience with open fields. He felt so exposed. Where would he sleep? Where would he find food?_

_He collapsed next to a tree and curled up, not for the first time. Everything seemed so hopeless. He wasn't alive - he was just existing. What kind of an existence was this? How come every other Pokemon seemed to have no trouble surviving, but just finding food was an arduous task for him? Was he just that weak and inferior? Why did he have so many questions?_

_He didn't know how long he curled up there. He snapped back to attention when he heard branches cracking somewhere in front of him. Panicked, he looked for a hiding spot. There was a bush, but it was too far. He'd be spotted too soon. He turned and looked at the stranger arriving._

_The first thing he saw was a red crest. Three blunt spikes rose from a shiny, metallic head. The Pokemon came completely over the hill that had been obscuring it. It was some sort of large metal insect. It had pincers for hands, and two small wings were on its back. The Riolu had never seen such a Pokemon before. It could probably crush him in nothing flat. There was nowhere to run. The Pokemon stopped, startled at the presence of a small creature. It approached cautiously. The Riolu looked up into its hard yellow eyes._

_"Are you lost?" the big Pokemon asked. Its voice was deep but oddly full of compassion._

_The Riolu didn't bother loosening up for him, though. He continued gazing up at the stranger, fear and wonder in his stare._

_"Are you lost?" the Pokemon asked again._

_"No," the Riolu replied. "What are you?"_

_"What am I?" the Pokemon repeated. "I'm a Scizor. Never seen one of me before, have you?" The Riolu shook his head. "That's understandable. We're not very common, especially in the wild. My name is Saiwing. What's yours, little one?"_

_The Riolu didn't understand what "in the wild" meant, but equally strange was the question posed. The Riolu had never even realized he had a name. He looked around the forest as if searching for an answer._

_"You do have a name, don't you?" Saiwing asked, a touch of humor in his voice._

_The Riolu stared intently at a centipede crawling by. A name rung in his ears. Something he'd been called over and over...what was it again?_

_"Seraph," the Riolu mumbled._

_"It's nice to meet you, Seraph," said Saiwing. "Where are your parents?"_

_Seraph stared back up at Saiwing as if he'd asked another strange question. "I don't know," he answered. "I don't remember much."_

_Saiwing straightened up and looked Seraph over. The Scizor frowned. "You're not here by choice, are you? You're too young to have been sent off by your parents. You're too skinny as well. What kind of misfortune has placed you in such a position?"_

_Seraph looked down and huddled closer. "I've lived like this as long as I can remember."_

_Saiwing lowered himself to his knees. "So you have nowhere to stay?"_

_Seraph shook his head. "I get kicked out of every home I find."_

_Saiwing looked thoughtful. A short period of silence passed before he spoke again. "If you have nowhere to stay, I can offer you my home outside the forest. I train others how to defend themselves there from time to time." Seraph's head snapped up at that. "I have abilities similar to yours. I can tell you're not lying to me when you say you don't remember much, that you have no place to stay."_

_The small Riolu stood up slowly. "Abilities like mine? You mean this?"_

_Holding his hand out, he gathered his life force up and formed some of it into a small white sphere. Saiwing's eyes widened._

_"You have an interesting aura," he remarked. "Most have blue-colored aura. A seraph, indeed..."_

_"It's strange to have white...aura?" Seraph asked. "How come I have white aura, then?"_

_Saiwing shook his head. "That is an enigma, little one. Even I don't know the answer to that one."_

_Seraph frowned. "What's a nigma?"_

_The Scizor chuckled. "A puzzle, a mystery." He straightened back up. "So, do you want to come live with me?"_

_Seraph could sense Saiwing's intentions. The bigger Pokemon wasn't going to double-cross him and abandon him. He was being honest. Seraph stepped forward. "Yeah. I can sense what you're feeling, too. You're not going to leave me."_

_Saiwing stood up. "Well then, follow me. My home is not far from here."_

_Excited, Seraph trotted after him. Was his unhappy existence about to change? Did he finally have someone to watch over and protect him?_

_"Do you have food?" Seraph asked._

_"I have lots of food. You can help yourself when you get there."_

_Seraph laughed. He hadn't laughed for...as long as he could remember. He'd asked so many questions, and now he felt like he was going to get the answers._

"Seraph," said Luna's voice.

He felt a gentle nudge in his side. Seraph opened his eyes and rolled onto his back. When he tried to sit up, several parts of his body protested by aching. He groaned and pushed himself upright, rubbing the side of his head.

"Time to go already?" he asked.

"Only if you want to," Luna amended. "I'm ready to go now. Do you want to wait a bit?"

Seraph rubbed his eyes and stood up. "No, I'm ready. Everything's packed, right?"

Luna nodded. "I estimate we should go about a week without any replenishment in resources, and there should be plenty of wild food on the way. Do you want to go over the plan here, or would you rather just hear it on the way?"

"Tell me on the way. I figure whatever you've got makes sense."

He descended the slope to the first floor and stretched. With enough walking, his body would stop arguing with him. He popped his neck and tried throwing a few attacks. Too slow. _Oh, well, I'll get faster as time goes on, and when the situation calls for it, my adrenaline will kick in._

"Hammerfist is asleep," Luna muttered as he stepped out from behind him. "Gore already rested. He's staying up to watch for intruders and possibly Master Saiwing if he returns."

"Those Geode power zealots will find a very angry Nidoking if they try coming back," Gore growled. "I'll be training all the while you're gone. Do me a favor and don't get into trouble."

"I'll try my best not to," said Seraph. "We're not going on vacation. Ready, Luna?"

Luna tossed him a bag of supplies. Seraph caught it by the opening at the top and slung it over his back. He turned to the main entrance and was caught by surprise.

"It's totally dark out? How long was I asleep?"

"Six or seven hours, I suppose," Luna grunted, attaching his bag to his back with leather straps. "We're not running late, so don't worry too much about it."

"Did you get any sleep?"

"A few hours. I have enough."

Seraph stretched his back one final time and walked toward the cave exit. "Alright. Let's get going."

The two of them left the base, fully packed and burning with determination. Their first destination, the battle site, would not be hard to find - a crater that big was hard to miss. From there, they'd follow Geode's aura blast into the mountains, where subtler tracking methods were required. This was the beginning of their long trial.


	5. Chapter 5: Prelude

"Think those two will be okay on their own?" Seraph asked, looking back at the hill. They'd already covered a considerable distance. The hill was no bigger than Seraph's palm now.

"Well," Luna began, "they're both more than capable of defending themselves, and Gore's there to keep Hammerfist in place. I'm more concerned about Hammerfist getting lost while looking for food. Or bringing back the wrong resources."

Seraph imagined the scene in his head, Ham holding an apple in one hand and a carrot in the other. _"Well, they both look the same!"_

They had left the base only ten minutes ago. It still wasn't quite clicking in Seraph's mind that they were on a serious, dangerous mission. At the moment, it simply felt like he was going on a long walk.

"So what's the plan?" he said after a pause.

"We'll head back to the mountain range and look for the battle site between Master Saiwing and Geode. Your help will be needed after that. You said Master Saiwing was blasted farther into the mountains, right?" Seraph nodded. "We'll follow the aura trail and search for signs of Master Saiwing. If we don't find any good leads within a week, we'll head back to the base to renew our supplies, rest, and exchange information. With that accomplished, we'll set out again with a longer deadline."

Seraph narrowly avoided tripping over a rock. He was using primarily his aura to feel his way through the dark. Beside him, he could sense Luna was doing the same thing. "What if we run into Geode's gang?"

Luna sighed. "We either fight or flee. If we run into all of them at once, it's doubtful we'll make it out of a battle in good enough condition to continue the search. If we run into Geode..."

"Then we're dead." He expanded his aura sensory radius. "I don't sense much ahead. Want to run?"

Luna imitated Seraph's action. "It's dark, but we should be fine. Let's do it."

The night passed quicker as they ran. Seraph kept himself busy by memorizing the landscape. He already remembered parts and pieces of the terrain, which he used in conjunction with Luna's memory to stay on the correct path. Every time they sensed another animal or Pokemon, they deviated from the path briefly to avoid a confrontation. Not all Pokemon were friendly.

About an hour later, they slowed down to a walk again. Their training had greatly increased their stamina, but they weren't invincible. Seraph panted and resisted the urge to put his hands on his knees and rest.

The ground was already changing to hard brown rock, and the earth became uneven and lumpy. The outermost signs of destruction were visible here in the form of ripples and small bits of debris. The terrain began to sink the farther in they went.

"Do you remember where the fight took place?" Luna panted.

"We're heading north, right?" Seraph grunted. He glanced around. "I don't recognize any landmarks since Geode blew them apart, but I'd say following the incline down to the crater's center would take us straight to the battle scene."

Luna nodded once and walked in the direction of the incline downwards. Seraph, wiping the sweat from his furry brow, followed him. He could already sense traces of aura particles. Most of it was Geode's. Even the smallest particle contained what felt like an ocean of power. Geode must have honed his aura every day of his life.

As the moon approached the center of the sky, they arrived at the bottom of the crater. While the ground featured varying levels of bumpiness, all boulders and structures had been cleared out. The aura concentration was strongest here. Seraph sat down to catch his breath.

"The darkness makes it hard to see," Luna muttered, lowering himself to the ground. "The abundant aura traces here also make it difficult to tell where Master Saiwing was blasted off to. You have more-developed aura senses, Seraph - can you tell where Geode fired his aura beam?"

Seraph closed his eyes and breathed deeply. What he was looking for was a particle path leading out of the huge clump of particles they were sitting in. Since the clump took up so much space, Seraph wondered if there was a path at all. Twenty seconds into his search, he detected a slight irregularity in the aura flow. It took him another minute to isolate the irregularity. From it, he mentally formed a path leading out of the clump and into a nearby mountain.

"I think I've got it," Seraph murmured. "Near the edge of the crater, that direction." He pointed to the northeast. "Should be a twenty, thirty minute walk. I'd run, but I'm just too tired."

"I won't argue with you there." They stood up and continued their journey. Luna analyzed the surroundings as they walked. "While helping you search for the aura beam path, I sensed traces of human conduct in the area. More than usual, I believe."

"Well, no doubt they wanted to know what the heck was going on over here," said Seraph.

"Indeed. However, I don't sense any humans or human-made tools in the area, so anything they did must have been done during the daytime, long before we came here. We should be careful all the same."

Seraph was focusing most of his senses on the aura path leading out of the crater. He trusted Luna to search for any other presences or traps. "All that said, we should be able to flee or fight our way out of any encounters pretty easily. Pokemon caught by humans typically aren't trained in close-combat like we are."

"Hmm. I don't know about that. Humans have many tools at their disposal, and we're considered rare Pokemon. Besides that, there are quite a few unsavory humans about. It's possible that, even using telepathy to contact them, they wouldn't pass up the chance to capture us. We can't afford that."

Luna never seemed particularly fond of humans, which Seraph considered a personal bias. He was well aware Luna thought the exact opposite of Seraph. "Come on, Luna. Not every human we meet is going to throw a...a Poke Ball, or whatever, at us. I'm pretty sure most of them would understand if we told them the situation."

The terrain changed to an upwards climb. Luna sighed. "I'm not so sure. I've never heard much positive in the way of humans. Have you noticed Gore?"

Seraph considered his answer. "I notice Gore every day when I wake up. What about him?"

"Any time he talks about his past, how he was orphaned, I can sense his emotions, and it relates to anger at humans. If I'm correct, humans are responsible for Gore's lonely childhood. I've also heard countless stories of Pokemon having their lives tampered with on a human's whim. On the whole, they appear to be a rather selfish culture."

"That's all based on hearsay. Through my experience, humans can be just as kind as they are, well...selfish."

Luna stopped. "You've met one before?"

Seraph slowed and stared up at the moon. "I think so."

"You don't know?"

The face of the woman flitted into his memory and back out just as quickly as it had come. "I, uh...it's complicated." In the moonlight, he saw the perplexed expression on Luna's face. "Look, I'll tell you later. Let's focus on finding Saiwing for now."

Luna nodded and resumed walking. The truth was, Seraph himself wasn't sure what to make of his memory. The farthest clean recollection he had was when he was a Riolu living by himself in the wilderness. Before that, he only had scattered fragments of a bigger picture. For some reason, a woman popped into his memory, but her face stayed so fleetingly that he couldn't even remember what she looked like. He knew he'd had a lot of affection for her, whoever she was, and that it had been reciprocated. As this was the only human he ever remembered meeting, if indeed she was real, his natural inclination was to believe in the good side of humanity.

"Seraph?" Luna's voice broke him out of his reverie. "I think we've arrived at the mountain you mentioned. A hole should have been blown in near the top, so we should get in through there. Are you ready?"

Seraph flashed him a challenging smile and leapt up the side of the mountain. Satisfied with his answer, Luna bounded up after him.

* * *

"You still haven't answered our question," Break panted. "Where are we going exactly?"

Geode's followers leaned against sturdy objects to rest. The brawl the other day had worn them all out, and every one had suffered injuries of some sort. Except for Geode. The Lucario stood at the top of a stone rise, looking in the direction of a nearby city. Geode, hearing the Hitmonlee's question, ignored him.

It was late night, and the rocky, bumpy terrain had made traveling safely impossible. Geode had been traversing the environment quickly, but the six others, who couldn't use aura, had lagged behind. It was only recently that Geode had deigned to set up camp.

"Hey, Crush, toss me an apple," Stab, the Infernape, grunted. The Rhydon grabbed an apple from a sack lying beside him and threw it at Stab's face. The Infernape caught it before it hit his nose. "Yeah, thanks a lot. I love you too."

"Will you please tell us where we're going?" Break repeated.

Geode turned his head slightly. "It doesn't matter. You won't be part of it."

Break groaned in frustration. "If we're going to tag along with you, we'd at least like to know what we're doing. And part of what? We Hitmonlee regard courtesy very highly. You should at least, out of courtesy, tell us what's happening."

"Dude, relax," Sting warned. He glanced at Geode.

Geode kept his back pointed firmly towards them. "I never asked any of you to follow me. You dog me around of your own volition. I don't owe you an explanation for anything. And besides that..." He turned around and looked Break in the eye. "You have no hope of defeating me in battle. The weak should not question the strong. The more you whine, the more of an obstacle you become. I have no need for obstacles, and I have allowed all of you much leeway as it is...perhaps too much. I would most likely have all of my goals accomplished if I didn't have to slow down for you."

Break's shoulders sagged. "Sorry."

Geode resumed his watch of the darkened city. Sting threw a rock at Break.

"So," Burn began, "do we have enough Oran Berries for the road ahead? We used most of them after the last fight."

Crush exhaled. "As backup health restoratives, we have more than enough. As food, we need to go searching for replenishments soon. Stab always knows where those things are. He's got those magic berry senses, don't you, Stab?"

"Only because the rest of you are too lazy to go look yourselves," Stab snorted. "Why don't you go search for a change instead of practicing your ego speeches, Crush?"

"Shut up, Stab," Crush growled.

"Alright," Burn intervened. "That's enough. We should send one or two people out in the morning to gather more food. I will volunteer if it lessens the tension any. Uh...would that be alright, Master Geode?"

A breeze blew a few leaves into the makeshift camp. All eyes were fixed on Geode. "Do what you will. If you want to stay with me, be here by noon tomorrow. We're leaving then." He focused his eyes on a spot outside the city. "My work should be completed by then."

Rend shrugged at Burn. The Blaziken cleared his throat. "Right. I and perhaps Stab will depart in the morning to forage for food. Will that do, Stab?"

Stab raised his hand in resignation. "Sure. I do it better than anyone. I should be awake by early morning, anyway." The Infernape laid down beside the rock structure he had been leaning against. "If I'm not, just wake me up. Don't disturb me until then."

Sting lowered himself to the ground, resting his head against a boulder. "Well, he's got the right idea. Might as well get all the sleep we can before leaving tomorrow."

Geode stared at the mark outside the city and expanded his aura senses. To his knowledge, the settlement was known as Cerulean City to the humans. And nearby that riverside collection of buildings...Geode would find his next goal. He located the aura he was looking for nearly five miles away. Tomorrow, he would find out the truth. Or another truth. He wondered if his list would ever end, but then again, wasn't that what life was all about? He would pursue his overriding goal until he was certain of the one big truth. He didn't know how long that would take, but he would let nothing stop him. Certainly not a complaining follower like Break...

Tomorrow would be an eventful day indeed.

* * *

Seraph pressed his hand against the cold stone wall to steady himself. Fatigue dulled his eyesight. It must have been a few hours at least since they'd entered Mt. Moon. "Pick up anything?" he asked.

Luna closed his eyes. For all Seraph's training, he wasn't as composed as Luna, who hadn't stopped to rest since entering the mountain. Perhaps all that impassiveness and chivalrous bearing really paid off in the end, because Seraph didn't have the etiquette to keep standing like Luna. "Except for a select few particles, the path seems to have ended around here. We've been going in circles and dead-ends for the last couple of hours."

Seraph laughed darkly. "At least I know it's not just me. So what do we do now?"

"If we don't know where to go, we merely take a path we haven't tried yet and push our luck. Master Saiwing could only have taken so many routes, if he's even in walking condition. Still..." He glanced around as if inspecting the surroundings. "I don't get the impression he's in Mt. Moon. I suspect he left via one of the mountain's exits. We haven't seen many caves leading out of here aside from the western entrance and the hole we came through, so..."

"There's probably only one more exit?" Seraph finished. "That's great, but first we have to find it." He sank to the ground. "And I'm beat as it is. I'm not sure I can continue at this rate."

Luna walked over and offered him his small smile. "You know what Master Saiwing would say about that. You're supposed to have steel determination to get you through anything. The sooner we can get out of here, the better."

"Sometimes I think you're made of more steel than I am," Seraph grunted, "and I'm the Steel-type. Especially your legs. How can you keep standing like that?"

Luna stretched out his hand to help Seraph up. "Well, I never really gave a lot of thought to it. I grew up being taught courtesy and etiquette, and...I suppose it's stuck. Or perhaps you're just too rough-and-tumble in comparison."

"Or both." Seraph attempted to remain upright like Luna. It was just as difficult as he thought it'd be.

The inside of Mt. Moon was predictably dark and cold. They'd met quite a few other Pokemon, though most were asleep at this time. The giant cave which encompassed Mt. Moon's gargantuan interior was made mostly of gray stone tunnels and arches. Here and there, they had found ladders leading up and down the mountain, a result of human tinkering. To their relief, they hadn't encountered any humans themselves.

They'd arrived at a sort of nexus deep into the mountain. Various tunnels and paths branched off from here, most of them leading to large rooms that connected to the other paths or dead-ends. There were only a couple of routes left. Seraph started down one, Luna tailing him.

Hope brimmed in Seraph as they progressed. He sensed a room larger than the ones they'd seen before looming ahead. And in that room...could it be an exit? He couldn't tell for sure. When he shared as much with Luna, the Gallade extended his own aura and checked it out. Luna, too, sensed what felt like an opening. They hastened their steps.

As they entered the room, the first thing Seraph noticed was moonlight. It really _was_ an exit, as the moonlight was pouring in through an opening in the wall. Mt. Moon had small pockets that opened to the outside world - most likely punched out to allow light in - but none that were big enough for most Pokemon to fit through. This was the exit they'd been looking for.

"Looks like we picked the right path," Seraph murmured. "Luna, you wouldn't mind if we called it a day once we get outside the mountain, would you?"

"Not at all. I'm just as tired as you are."

Upon stepping outside, Seraph breathed in fresh air for the first time in hours. Luna sighed in relief. As anxious as they were to set up camp, they needed to find an area away from human traffic; after all, the mountain opening led straight onto a road. A few minutes later, they found a secluded depression beside the mountain where they were obscured from view by some tall grass. As soon as Luna announced they were camped, Seraph plopped over on his side and closed his eyes. A few seconds later, Luna laid down much more gently, both of them keeping their senses alert so they wouldn't be caught unawares.

_Saiwing,_ Seraph thought, _where are you? We're coming to find you. I hope you'll realize that and make our job easier. I'm strong, but I don't know if I can do this. And without you, what would happen to Steel Whole? What would happen to the one who took me in? Perhaps you're not my father, but you're a nice substitute. I don't want to lose you._


	6. Chapter 6: The Dark Conscience

A breath of wind ruffled Seraph's ears. He twitched them on instinct, becoming aware of the sunlight shining on his face. He opened his eyes slowly, mildly irritated by the intrusion.

Every member of Steel Whole had been trained to wake somewhat early in the morning, although Seraph was a late sleeper by nature. Saiwing would prod him awake every time he tried to sleep in, and eventually he had learned to kick himself to life lest his master make that annoying scraping sound with his claws into Seraph's ears. Even so, Seraph always seized an opportunity when Saiwing wasn't present.

Today was the rare exception. He was surprised he'd gotten any sleep at all, what with the unfamiliar bed and recent events. Seraph pushed himself to his feet and stretched. To his surprise, Luna was still asleep on the ground to his right - he could tell from the Gallade's suppressed aura.

_I actually did something before you did,_ Seraph thought. He'd rub it in Luna's face later.

Mt. Moon took on a slightly different appearance in the daylight. They'd set up camp beside a steep rock cliff that towered above them. The peak of the mountain reached above the clouds, forcing Seraph to crane his neck back to see it properly. A few white puffs dotted the otherwise pure blue sky. The immediate environment was craggy but overall very green.

Behind Seraph was a human-made city of considerable size. He had no idea how big most human settlements were, but he got the impression its greatest claim to fame was scenery, not technology. While not rustic, few of its buildings were as massive as those in other cities he'd seen. A river wound around the northern and western parts of the city, casting it in a perpetual but surreal haze.

Seraph was suddenly struck by the size of the world, and a pang of discouragement went through him. Somewhere on the face of the earth, Saiwing was wandering about. He may be nearby, but that was too vague for a search party with a grand number of two. Another thing to bear in mind was their proximity to a human city. Scizor were rare, powerful Pokemon, and in his weakened state, it wouldn't be hard for an aspiring Trainer to chuck one of those metallic balls at him and capture him. If that happened, the difficulty of their journey would take a dramatic spike upward.

He gently nudged Luna with his foot. Luna opened his eyes a second later, igniting his dormant aura. He stood up and stared at Seraph quizzically. "You got up before me?"

Seraph let a smug grin spread across his face. "There's a first time for everything, isn't there?"

"I suppose so." Luna reached his arm behind his head, touched his shoulder, and leaned over. "How long have you been up?"

"About three seconds. But I still beat you, didn't I?"

"You're not going to forget this anytime soon, are you?"

Probably not. Bragging rights were a high priority in Steel Whole. Seraph popped his neck. "Master Saiwing's aura trail has gone cold. If we're lucky, we'll pick up his consciousness somewhere around here, but that's a best-case scenario. What do you think we should do?"

Luna was visibly grateful Seraph had dropped the boast. "Put yourself in Master Saiwing's position. He's been separated from his students in a land that may be unfamiliar to him, and he's recovered enough to move from his starting point. With that being the case...why hasn't he attempted to return to us? He understands aura enough to find our consciences. We would have run into him eventually."

"So he's going somewhere else." Seraph creased his brow. "Do you think Geode caught up to him?"

"Doubtful. Geode would have killed him on the spot if he'd wished him dead."

"Could he have changed his mind?"

Luna propped himself against the cliff wall behind him. "Anything is possible, Seraph. A meteor could have dropped out of the sky and blown him to the southern islands for all we're aware of. But how much could have transpired in less than a day to warrant a change in Geode's plans? I believe Geode has moved onto bigger goals and all but forgotten us."

"Then why is Master Saiwing running _away_ from us rather than _toward_ us? Doesn't he want to reunite with us?"

Luna leaned off the wall and started walking toward the riverside city, making his intentions clear. "I don't think so. Perhaps he's laying low to avoid contact with Geode's followers. Perhaps he has found something interesting. As you are fond of saying, Seraph, 'we'll find out when we do it.'"

Seraph watched him walk by for a moment. Luna usually wasn't this impulsive. Then again, nothing was as it should be. Sighing, Seraph fell into stride beside him. The city was thirty minutes to an hour away, giving them plenty of time to speculate. "Master Saiwing definitely can't be avoiding Geode's goons. Heck, we could pulverize those morons ourselves. And sightseeing isn't nearly so important as returning to give us support. He knows something we don't."

"That isn't unusual." The ground began sloping down. "This strikes me as something personal. Master Saiwing mentioned that he knew what Geode had been doing prior to his assault. Whatever our master is doing now must relate to that."

Seraph's conscience brushed against the minds of several other Pokemon in the vicinity. He ignored them when he realized they weren't threatening in any manner. "Must be pretty dang important, then, huh? If he's going to leave us behind like this."

"He always knows what he's doing, Seraph. We should trust him, even if we don't understand him."

Wandering into foreign territory without the aid of their master felt very similar to slathering on meat sauce and diving into a pool filled with Carvanha. Anything and everything could go wrong. Seraph himself felt like a child separated from his father. Saiwing was the closest thing he could remember to having a father, just as the mystery woman from his memories was his secret mother figure. The absence of both left him feeling extremely vulnerable.

Seraph kicked a small rock down the slope. "So where are we going? Not into the city, I hope."

"Of course not. That would be suicide to our mission. I suggest we investigate the area around the city and see if we can pick up his consciousness. If nothing turns up, we'll need to take a harsher course of action, and I'm not ruling out venturing into the city itself to see what we can see."

"Bring back souvenirs?" Seraph joked. Luna opened his mouth to clarify, but Seraph cut him off. "I was kidding. Whatever you say, Luna, but that's not going to be easy. Where would we even start searching? Do either of us know anything about humans?"

Luna gave Seraph a sideways glance and smiled slightly. "One problem at a time, Seraph."

He rolled his shoulders. "I guess. Do you feel like running?"

Seraph could tell Luna was considering the soreness of his body. After a pause, he said, "Running is a faster method of transportation than walking. If you're up for it, I am."

To answer, Seraph sprinted forward, pounding the terrain with his feet. Luna joined him a second later. Running would cut their time by at least half, but they'd be in little condition to fight if the need arose. Hopefully they wouldn't run into the one who'd put them in this mess in the first place.

Twenty minutes later, Seraph felt like some annoying chimpanzee was kicking him in the ribs repeatedly as he continued his sprint, breathing hard. First they stayed up into the wee hours of the night spelunking through Mt. Moon's interior, and now they were forcing their tired bodies to run almost past their limits. Luna panted heavily beside him, obviously falling into the same numb mental state that allowed them to run endlessly at the expense of their pain.

"Let's rest," Luna gasped.

Seraph's legs collapsed beneath him as soon as Luna's words registered in his mind. He tumbled across the grass several times and came to a stop on his back. His racing heartbeat filled his ears. Rest? Mission accomplished.

Mt. Moon lay upside-down in Seraph's vision. The bulk of the mountain range was behind them, and only a few rocky bumps extended to above the city. The west side of the city was now an aura-backed stone's throw away from their position. The river was close enough for them to hear the sound of its gently stirring waters.

The combined efforts of Seraph and Luna's consciences let them spot humans in advance and adjust their path accordingly. More and more humans dotted the landscape the closer they came to the city, which didn't bode well for them, especially as they were still in "the wilderness." Inside the confines of the city, there were too many people around for a safe Pokemon battle, and they could easily be mistaken for another Trainer's Pokemon. In the wild, the gloves were off. Seraph was told Lucario had the innate ability to understand human language and communicate via telepathy, but he didn't know if it would save them if they were confronted.

And despite their sustained run, Luna still had the audacity to remain standing. Seraph didn't know how he did it.

Seraph exhaled sharply. "Well? Sense anything?"

Luna took a moment before answering. "There are little balls of light flashing in my vision over and over again. Otherwise, I sense nothing out of the ordinary."

Seraph twisted his head to see Luna better. "Did you just make a joke?"

"You must be rubbing off on me."

Seraph turned back to the sky. "Might as well take a breather here. If we keep going and anything happens, we're done for. I don't think I even have the concentration for an Aura Sphere." He listened to the sound of the river for awhile, trying to control his breathing. It had a calming effect on him. This place wouldn't be a bad spot to live in, if they could just get around the human problem.

Luna grunted quietly. "What do you suppose they do in the city, anyway? Do the humans live in all of those buildings?"

Seraph let his head flop to the side so he could fully see the town. "Probably not. Humans have all these gadgets and whatnot, so some of the buildings must be there to store and make them." A warm, meaty scent filled his mind, generated purely from his memory. "Someday, when so much chaos isn't going on, I'd like to march right into a city and see how humans do things. I think it would be worth the hassle."

Luna lowered his gaze to meet Seraph's eyes. "I don't. You would inevitably be captured, and your adventure would be cut short. Unless getting captured is your intention... I wonder what life serving a Pokemon Trainer is like. Most wild Pokemon aren't keen on it, but some say it's a liberating experience."

Seraph shrugged his shoulders as best he could while on the ground. "I'd hate to be someone's pet, but you'd be shown a lot of love that way, wouldn't you? Humans come in all packages just like we do, so I know there'd be the occasional jerk, but it could be...I don't know. A whole new beginning."

"Well, let's not find out personally just yet." Luna forced himself forward to stand by Seraph. "That reminds me...you told me yesterday you'd met a human before. That was the first I'd ever heard of it. Was this before you were incorporated into Steel Whole?"

"Yeah. I mean, I don't remember much about her, but - "

"It was a woman?"

"Yeah. Whoever she was, she was nice to me. Whenever this happened, it was early in my childhood, long before I met Master Saiwing. I think she took care of me." He shook his head. "It's fuzzy. But I know it happened. I've never even seen a human up close, but somehow I know her."

Luna digested the information. "An interesting thing, indeed. No wonder your perspective on humans is so biased."

"I'm the biased one?"

"You've never commented much on your childhood, either. Do you remember much of it?"

The winded Lucario slowly sat up. "No. The farthest back I can remember is being in the middle of nowhere, struggling to get by from day to day. Master Saiwing found me and took me back to the hill, and that's where my life started, as far as I'm concerned." He sensed a human conscience making its way closer to their location. If it proceeded in that direction for a few minutes, they would be spotted. "Meh. Let's start walking. We're not covering any ground just sitting here."

He hated having to disturb his abrupt rest, but they hadn't had any confrontations since they'd left their base, and now wasn't the time to begin. With a groan, Seraph tottered on his legs. When his balance returned, he strode forward. Luna sighed and resumed his journey with him.

The plan was to explore the northwestern edge of the city's exterior and trace a shape roughly resembling a square around the town. Seraph's hopes weren't high that they would find anything, but it was the best they had to go on. They would question the local Pokemon along the way to see if they knew anything. Surely something would come up.

"Do you think it's amnesia?" Luna asked.

"What is?"

"Your lack of childhood memories. Were you just not very aware, or do you think your memories were stolen from you?"

Most Pokemon had vivid-enough memories from a month old onward. Seraph was estimated to be about four months old when Saiwing had found him, and he only recalled spending one month in the wilderness. That left two months unaccounted for. "I feel like my memories are suppressed," Seraph answered warily. "Like I was _forced_ to develop amnesia by some outside source."

"Isn't that how amnesia usually works?" Luna stated.

"It's difficult to explain," Seraph snapped. "It was like being asleep for months at a time. Everything is just so hazy."

Seraph's expanded aura touched another conscience. The alien feel of it made him want to recoil, but he prodded further into it. It was unlike any aura he'd ever felt. It was big - he got the feeling he was only touching the outer edges of it - and surprisingly hollow. A powerful conscience laid at the center of the aura field, and Seraph sensed many dark intentions emanating from it.

"Do you feel that?" he muttered.

Luna lifted his head and looked around, expanding his aura reach. A few seconds later, he found the same thing Seraph was focusing on. "Is that another Pokemon's aura? It feels different from every other soul I've touched."

"Yeah, I think whatever it is is going to try and kill us if we see it." The human wanderer wasn't changing direction. They'd have to pick up the pace if they wanted to remain undetected. "Want to check it out?"

Luna frowned at Seraph. "You just said it would try to kill us."

"It's a lead, and there's a human behind us. This aura could be the result of Master Saiwing's or Geode's tampering. We won't know until we do it."

"And we'll never remember if it kills us. Think it through for a moment."

Seraph glanced into the clouds, then looked back down. "Yup, I'm going to do it. You can stay here and play with the human, or you can help me avoid death. Either way, I'm going on ahead."

Luna placed his hands on his hips as Seraph ran ahead. "You are too impulsive for your own good. One of these days you're going to get us all murdered." Shaking his head, he took off after Seraph.

The size of the aura shocked Seraph. It was like a giant field hemming in a large power source. They were just skirting the edges of the field at the moment. As Luna had acknowledged, he'd never felt anything like it. His impetuous side taking over, he decided that even if this being didn't provide them with a lead, it would be interesting to see.

The aura was located inside the remnants of the mountain range, across the river northwest of the city. That would place it an almost a straight line from Saiwing's violent entry to the mountains. It had to be related.

Seraph ordered his limp legs to uphold his run. He'd have time to rest when they were inside the mountain's walls. The river was a few strides ahead, separating the city from the outer world. He'd have to try a trick he'd learned while under Saiwing's training to get across. As his foot reached the water's edge, he kicked off, soaring toward the rock wall on the left. He hit it a second later and maintained his run, sprinting across the sloped surface. Luna joined him after a moment, both of them using their auras to keep their balance.

There was a small spit of land connecting the mountains to the river. A man-sized hole in the wall allowed entry to a natural but foreboding cave. Might as well start their search there. Four strides later, he dropped off the wall and landed on the shore. Luna plopped beside him and gasped for air. "Need I remind you our muscles have nearly stopped functioning?"

Seraph bent over and panted. "No, I'm well aware of that, Luna. Ready to go exploring?"

"Of course not. But I am not about to let you wander in there alone."

"Nice to know I can count on you." Seraph inhaled deeply and stepped into the cave. Luna reluctantly did the same after a pause.

There was definitely something wrong with the cave. The moment Seraph entered, the temperature dropped from the warm air outside to the point where his breath came out as puffs of vapor. The sound of the river was strangely muted as well, and there was barely any noise coming from within the cave. Seraph detected a slight shift in the aura field, like someone turning in a bed, but it otherwise remained stagnant.

It was also surprisingly easy to see inside, despite there being no visible openings aside from the cave entrance. Bluish-gray rock composed the entirety of the indoors and formed large bumps and plateaus. It would be quite a climb for a human (or a completely winded Lucario), and the general creepiness factor didn't lend the place much to exploring for leisure. The room covered a diameter of around six hundred feet, and the ceiling stretched into a rough reverse-pyramid high above. A slowly-stirring river bent in an upside-down U shape in front of them. A large hill sloped up to their left, blocking most of the cavern from view.

Seraph watched the vapor of his breath disappear. "Well, want to set up camp here for the day?"

"Do that," Luna stated flatly, "and perhaps I _will_ leave you on your own."

"Yeah, this place doesn't look very inviting to guests. Look at my breath - how is it doing that?"

"I don't know. This cave isn't normal. Are you sure this is a good idea?"

Seraph stumbled to the river's edge and bent down, examining his reflection. The water wasn't very transparent. "Put it this way, Luna. A week's worth of leppa berries says we won't find anything meaningful searching around the city, so investigating this whacked-out aura is the closest we'll come to a lead. It may kill us, or turn us into vegetables or something, but this opportunity is too good to let go. It may not come again."

"It won't come again if it kills us." Luna dipped his hand into the river. "But I understand what you're saying. The chances of finding Master Saiwing elsewhere are slim. Even if this is not Master Saiwing, it may lead us to him."

"Do you think Geode is related to this?"

Luna closed his eyes and calmly waved his hand through the water. "That's hard to say. I haven't felt Geode's aura up-close before, but I don't think this is him. I wonder if it's even considered an animal. Perhaps it's just a residual consciousness."

On the subject of auras, Seraph felt a new one approaching them and turning violent. He pinpointed it deep in the river and saw its life flames change from neutral blue to red. The aura was large and packed with barely restrained power. Its charging toward them didn't help relations.

Seraph and Luna leaped back as the water in front of them exploded, spraying them with droplets. A giant blue serpent erupted from the depths and straightened toward the ceiling. Two long white whiskers hung from its gaping mouth, which was lined with four fangs. A couple of large fins extended from the sides of its face. The beast lowered its head to them and roared, blowing Seraph's fur back.

"I hate Gyarados," Seraph muttered.

The things were constantly angry, unreasonable, uncommunicative, and bursting with power, and they were as common as rocks. They could also fly, although that was rarely seen. While they were stupid, one wrong move would usually spell death for whoever ticked them off.

"We can't fight this," Luna yelled. "We've exhausted ourselves too much. What do you want to do, Seraph?"

"Run!"

The Gyarados opened its mouth wider, leaned its head back, and vomited a wave of purple fire. Seraph and Luna jumped opposite directions as the Dragon Rage exploded the ground where they were and sent shards of rock everywhere. Dragon Rage was a move that was guaranteed to only damage its target so much, but it was still dangerous. Seraph grunted as his legs screamed in protest.

"Do you see an exit?" Luna asked, keeping his eyes on the Gyarados.

Seraph sure as heck wasn't leaving the cave, not over some giant grumpy snake. (Actually, on second thought, that was good reason enough for the average person to abandon ship.) Across the river, he saw a hole leading farther down into the cave. If they could make it to there, the Gyarados would probably leave them alone. Seraph pointed at it, and Luna nodded his head.

While Luna distracted the Gyarados with a small flame of aura, Seraph ran to the river right of the large serpent. Once on the other side, he would capture the Gyarados's attention long enough for Luna to make his way over. The river was only ten feet away. If he could force his legs to work...

The Gyarados turned sharply around to Seraph, the inside of its mouth glowing bright yellow. He realized a second too late what it was going to do. Instead of making an epic leap to the far side to save himself as the background exploded, he tripped and tumbled into the river. The Gyarados released its Hyper Beam, blowing a huge chunk out of his portion of the cave and bathing the room in yellow light. Smoke and stones blew wildly, although Seraph was spared by his plunge into the river. The force of the Hyper Beam spun him around, making him lose direction.

_Luna!_ he called mentally. _Luna, are you alright?_

_Fine. Where are you?_

_In the river somewhere!_ He felt Luna's aura getting farther away and started to panic. The river didn't look like it was moving that fast. He flailed, trying to reach the surface. _I have no idea where I'm going. Help!_

At last, he pushed his head through the surface and gasped for air. The river was carrying him into a small hole in the wall, where it probably emptied somewhere else. The darkness of the hole enveloped him and the water sped up. This was a bad omen.

How was all this happening? The cave was unnaturally cold, an angry Gyarados wanted him dead, and the supposedly placid river was moving at blinding speed. To make things worse, he heard the sound of rushing water amplified up ahead. Before he could cry out, he felt himself falling with water pounding on his head. In the darkness, he could barely see where he was going.

Maybe Luna was right. Maybe he was too impulsive for his own good. And he didn't even have much of a life to flash before his eyes. How depressing.

Seraph crashed into a body of water and sunk below the surface again. When he poked his head back up, it was easier to see. There was an entire room beneath the first one, although it looked much the same. The river continued to carry him through at high speed, preventing him from getting a good look around.

For better or worse, the hollow aura was getting closer. Seraph had counted on meeting it in his own time. His own clumsy legs had doomed him to the unknown.

The river carried him around the room and into another hole in the wall opposite the one he'd just come from. He fell down another waterfall, suspended in the air for a few seconds, and plunged into a pond.

To his surprise, the river had stopped moving for the most part. The new room was darker than the last two but still provided enough light to see clearly. The water formed a circle around a wide stone island in the middle, which looked to be around two hundred feet wide. Several other waterfalls poured into the room, but the water level never changed. In the middle of the island was a strange light purple object. Seraph knew it was the source of the hollow aura. It was also awake and paying close attention to him.

Seraph swam through the ring of water and cautiously crawled onto land, dripping wet and exhausted from his constant motion. He sank to his knees and forced himself not to collapse. This didn't go as he had planned, and Luna's aura was high above him. It would take awhile for him to arrive.

The aura of the thing in the middle of the island pushed against Seraph's and forced its way into his mind. Feeling insecure and violated, Seraph pushed back. He might as well have been shoving against the walls in the room. It delved deeper and seized his consciousness, causing Seraph to flinch.

_Who are you?_ a deep, threatening voice asked.

_Uh. Seraph. Who are -_

_I don't know what Pokemon you are, but no one is allowed in my territory. Remain and I will kill you._

"Now hold on a moment!" Seraph said aloud. "I didn't come here by choice. I fell into a river and - "

_That's a lie. I'm the whole reason you came here._

"I mean I didn't intend to come this way," Seraph amended. "I felt your aura and decided to check it out. I'm looking for someone close to me, and I thought maybe he would be here. Or something. You know."

_No, I don't know. If you're not going to leave, I'm going to dispose of you._

"Then where's the exit at?"

_Go back the way you came._

Seraph glanced back at the waterfall he'd fallen from. "I'm too tired to make it up there. Give me a moment to rest."

_Fine. I'll just kill you then._

What was it with everyone trying to kill him? Did this place just hate outsiders? Seraph forced himself to his feet and thought of ways to escape. Even if he wasn't as weakened as he was, he knew this thing could probably kill him in a matter of seconds if it wanted to. There was no way he could beat it.

The object in the middle of the island unfurled itself slowly. Seraph had thought it was a large crystal at first, but it was actually a slim, bony creature. A skinny neck held up a cat-like head bearing two crests on the back of the dome. The head actually appeared to be a blend of that of a cat's and human's, but the quiet wrath was written all over its face. Its three fingers on both hands ended in thick orbs. A huge tail waved around above powerful, limber legs. The creature straightened to its full height, which was nearly seven feet tall. Its purple eyes glowed in the darkness and fixed on him.

"What are you?" Seraph grunted.

_An abomination. Fight or flee. The choice is yours._

The creature raised its hand to Seraph. A ball of dark purple energy gathered in its palm in the blink of an eye and shot at him. It took Seraph at least two seconds to ready an Aura Sphere, and that was considered fast. He lowered his left shoulder and felt the orb raise his fur as it blew past and erupted into the wall. The light purple creature lowered its hand.

_You're quick for something so beaten down. I suppose I should finish you equally as quick._

It flicked its tail at him, generating a vertical disk of pink psychic energy. The disk produced a loud saw sound as it soared toward him. It was too big and fast to simply lean away from like Seraph had with the Shadow Ball. He was going to lose something in this attack.

The disk stopped and flashed violently as it was met with another psychic attack. When the screeching and flashing ended, the disk dispersed into a group of pink particles. Luna stood in its place, panting and holding his retractable, built-in wrist-blades up.

The psychic creature turned to face them fully. _I didn't think you could interfere. You two are stronger than I thought. Maybe this will be a challenge. Those are rare._

"We are not here for a fight," Luna explained. "We're looking for a Scizor named Saiwing who may have passed through here. If you provide us with the information we need, we will peacefully go."

_You are in no position to bargain. I see no reason to share this information with you. I am the strongest Pokemon alive, and I will not be commanded by two fledglings like you._

Seraph's eyes widened. This monster knew something about Saiwing. "Luna, I'm too exhausted to fight. You may have to do this alone for awhile."

Luna sighed. "I'm also tired, Seraph. The Gyarados did not politely turn and leave. I'll need your help regardless."

Seraph glared at the psychic creature. His muscles were barely responding as they were, and now they had to fight this monstrosity. That was beyond impossible.

The creature took a step forward. Then, to their surprise, it lifted itself off the ground and began hovering toward them, its feet hanging an inch over the floor. _You stand no chance. Don't worry about your deaths - you clearly don't value your lives if you came all the way here. It will be quick._

Luna hopped out of the way as the creature shot another volley of Shadow Balls at them. Seraph returned the attack with an Aura Sphere, vaporizing the first couple of Shadow Balls. The remaining balls pounded into Seraph and knocked him back into the river. Thankfully, he hadn't been very injured before the event. He was just tired. With a groan, he maneuvered himself upright and swam back to the island as Luna swung his aura-filled wrist-blades at the creature. The psychic monster avoided them all by inches and placed his hand on Luna's chest. Luna flew into the wall with a rippling of the air.

Seraph ran toward the creature, aware of his lack of balance and clumsy steps. He zigzagged, hoping to make himself a harder target, and threw a flurry of white aura fireballs. The attacks all deflected to other areas of the room as they approached the creature. Seraph readied a Force Palm as he drew near, intending to paralyze the creature and slow its movements. He swung his hand into open space. The creature had disappeared. Something hit him hard in the back and sent him sprawling forward. He rolled to his feet and landed in a crouched position.

_You're sturdier than you look,_ the creature commended. _I would have broken most opponents by now. I suppose I should end it now and stop toying with you._

"I would have you stop altogether," another deep voice said.

The three of them turned to the source of the voice, and Seraph felt all his hopes shatter. Standing at the far edge of the stone island was a short Lucario. They hadn't sensed his aura as he'd approached - not even the cat-like creature trying to kill them, judging by the curious expression on his face. Seraph mentally recited every swear word he could think of.

_Now who are you?_ the psychic creature asked, furrowing his brow.

"Your next challenger," Geode replied. "Those two aren't worth your time. Focus your attention on me, because I will kill you if your concentration slips."

The psychic creature faced him, flicking his tail. _Bold words. However, I did not sense you approaching. Is your power really that negligible?_

"No." Geode walked forward. "You said earlier that you are the strongest Pokemon alive. I'm here to put that to the test."

_Those who test me usually do not live._

"I think you'll find I am that rare exception. I've heard many rumors about Mewtwo, allegedly the strongest and most violent Pokemon in existence. I'm testing my strength against you after I defeated my old rival, which was easy enough." Silence passed for a moment. "I hope you will be at least something of a challenge."

Seraph laughed in his head. _Well, he's got the violent part down._

_More than a challenge,_ the creature, Mewtwo, responded. He lifted his right hand and produced a massive sonic wave at Geode. The wave tore a path through the island, parted the water, and blew a crater into the wall beyond. Almost impossibly, Mewtwo had missed his target by a few inches. From his past experience, Seraph knew that was from Geode's speed, not from Mewtwo's ineptitude.

Luna carefully made his way to Seraph. The Lucario grunted darkly. "Look on the bright side: maybe they'll kill each other."

Geode raised his own hand and launched a wall of blue fire at Mewtwo. The fire surrounded Mewtwo and lit the room a bright blue, but the wave dispelled a moment later with the psychic creature untouched. Mewtwo narrowed his eyes.

Mewtwo was behind Geode in an eye-blink, his hand glowing with psychic energy above the Lucario's head. He brought it down, apparently missing again, as Geode struck at Mewtwo's head with a flaming fist. Mewtwo ducked under the punch and swung his thick tail at Geode's chest. The Lucario caught the tail, swerved, and hurled Mewtwo across the room. Mewtwo stopped a foot short of the wall and hovered back down to the playing field.

"Should we leave?" Luna whispered. "This is beyond us."

"Heck no," Seraph muttered back. "Both of them know something about Master Saiwing, and I'm not leaving until I hear it."

Perhaps it was selfish of him, but he knew Luna wouldn't abandon him. He watched as Geode and Mewtwo exchanged a whirlwind of blows faster than he could track. It ended with Mewtwo blasting backward wrapped in blue flames. Geode had finally landed a hit on him.

"You're powerful," Geode commented, "but if this is the height of your power, I'm disappointed. Use all your strength before I crush you."

_With pleasure,_ Mewtwo rumbled. The whole of his eyes glowed blue as Seraph sensed him summoning up his full power. He raised his arm, lifting the dust off the island in the process. With a series of swift motions, he cut his hand through the air like lightning, sending long psychic energy disks with each swing.

Geode bounded to the outer wall to avoid the initial onslaught. The disks sliced through the rock like Luna's blades through dry leaves, permanently scarring it. Geode ran along the wall, jumping across the waterfalls and knocking aside the rest of the disks with his hand. Mewtwo teleported in front of him a second later and jabbed with his tail, shining with purple energy, at Geode. Geode twisted past the attack and planted his fist into Mewtwo's chest, sending him down into the circle of water. The tall creature disappeared with a splash but quickly returned, eyes glowing brighter.

The water began spinning around the island. Geode, as calm as when the battle had started, grabbed ahold of the wall and patiently waited for the attack to complete itself. When the room resembled a huge maelstrom, the water rose into thick tendrils, snaking into the air. Seraph and Luna scrambled away from the edge of the island as a tendril burst to life behind them. The serpentine blobs dove at Geode from all possible angles, cutting off his escape.

Geode, of course, was not to be denied. He sliced through two tendrils at once with a wave of aura and hopped off the wall. The remaining tendrils changed direction and followed him, twining around each other to try and hit him from all sides. Geode flipped over the first one, rolled under the second one, and produced a large aura shockwave to dispel the rest. Before Mewtwo could react, Geode appeared behind him and kicked him into the center of the island.

Mewtwo rolled back into position and opened his hands, ready for the next attack. Geode walked to the island and stared at Mewtwo. Seraph looked between the two, hoping the next set of techniques wouldn't obliterate the rest of the room. They maintained eye contact for what felt like forever.

Geode sighed, turned around, and began to walk away. "Forget it. We're done. I've evaluated your aura, and this really is all you can muster. I came here for nothing."

Mewtwo dipped his head. _Do you really think that wise, blue one?_

Geode looked over his shoulder slightly. "Don't tempt me." He waded into the circle of water, which was still foaming from Mewtwo's failed attack. "You can do what you want with those two. Their master happens to be the rival I defeated so easily a couple of days ago. Maybe they will present a decent challenge you can actually overcome." With a blurred leap, he disappeared over one of the waterfalls. All was quiet.

The glow in Mewtwo's eyes faded, and he softened his stance. _Your master, a Scizor, came into this cave less than a day ago. He came to warn me of that strange Pokemon's plans, which included battling me. I didn't believe it to be a threat until now._

"Yeah, he's something else," Seraph muttered. "So will you tell us what you know about Master Saiwing is or not? We're not here to fight like Geode was. Why did you attack us in the first place?"

_It's in my nature. I told you, I am an abomination. I was never meant to exist in the first place, and my sole purpose was to be used by others. I promptly severed myself from those shackles._ He met Seraph's gaze. _I tried to fight the Scizor, Saiwing, but he proved to be a better opponent than I thought. He gave his warning and then left, and I didn't bother to give chase. He also told me you two might appear and to show you mercy._

"Thanks," Seraph intoned.

"Yes, I believe you failed that part," Luna added.

Mewtwo let the comment slide. _In the south, there are two islands side-by-side, both filled with ice and frozen water. Saiwing told me he was going there next to speak to another great Pokemon. He wants us to unite against Geode before he does something "horrible and irreversible," as he put it. I doubt our alliance will happen, as there are Pokemon more stubborn than I._

"Southern islands?" Luna repeated. "What are these islands called, and what 'great Pokemon' lives there?"

_The humans have given them the name "Seafoam Islands." The Pokemon that presides there is a legendary bird Pokemon called Articuno, which is said to freeze anything on sight. I have never met Articuno personally, so I cannot say what is rumor and what is fact._

Seraph considered Mewtwo's words. "You're not telling us all this just to kill us, are you?"

_...I suppose there are more important things at stake. I have respect for your master, and my battle with Geode has been...humbling._ There was a fair bit of venom in the last word. _I will let you go this time, but do not come again. As you have likely guessed, I don't take well to visitors._

Seraph's feet slowly left the ground. He began to flail as the panic of not being able to control his own body took over. To his left, Luna was also starting to float, although he accepted it more peaceably. Pink particles formed around both of them.

_Your master was concerned for you,_ Mewtwo continued. _He is aware that you are following him and doesn't want you to do anything rash. I don't particularly care what happens to you, but perhaps you should take his thoughts to heart._

The room dissolved into pink before them. Mewtwo's hollow aura grew farther and farther away. When the pink faded away, they were back outside the cave entrance. Seraph looked into the sky, appreciating the light and warmth.

_Now get lost,_ Mewtwo ordered before withdrawing into his consciousness.


	7. Chapter 7: Genesis

_The Lucario took a deep breath and focused on his aura. Contrary to popular belief, no, he did not get some sort of spiritual kick from meditating for three hours a day. His butt was numb to the point of unfeeling by the end of it and it was boring as heck. But if he wanted to grow stronger, this was part of the deal._

_The wind blew through the forest, rustling the trees and cooling the Lucario's body. He appreciated the comfort but tried to ignore it. His full concentration needed to be on his aura if he was to become proficient at it._

_That was the weird thing about aura. Some beings were born with bigger supplies of it than others, but it was next to impossible to simply increase your aura. The point of aura training was to make transitions smoother and quicker, and careful meditation followed by application usually turned up with new techniques. The end was exciting, but the means..._

_He'd lived in the forest for as long as he could remember, only leaving for short trips. As far as he was concerned, the forest was his home for life. He'd been alive for a good thirty years, so most of the forest-dwellers were familiar with and respected him. To his dismay, after stopping a few arrogant fights, he'd been unofficially appointed as the forest's guardian. He'd found out the hard way once what failing to answer the invisible call of duty did to one's reputation._

_He honestly didn't give a crap what others thought about him. Not really. The exceptions were his close friends, and he couldn't bear disappointment from them. Dirty looks from strangers were no big deal. Dirty looks from your friends... It hurt._

_So for the last several years, the Lucario had devoted himself to growing stronger for the benefit of the forest and those who lived in it. Cheesy as it sounded, he was the forest's guardian, and he had to ensure he lived up to that title. Not for fame or fortune, but to protect those he viewed as his family. That was all he really wanted._

_As he sat cross-legged on a flat stump he'd carved out himself, he could feel the auras of nearly everyone in the forest. He could pick out his friends from the strangers, something he'd made sure he was capable of early on. Anything foreign in the forest warranted a close watch. Some Pokemon were fond of traveling around just to pick fights._

_It was early in the afternoon, and the sky was mostly free of clouds, bathing the forest in light. The canopy blocked out much of the sun rays, keeping the woods cool and shadowed. Tall grass rose around him, obscuring the tinier life-forms on the ground. He didn't consider himself a sentimental Lucario, but he thought the place was beautiful. Just another reason to stay._

_The aura of a Pokemon a half-mile away caught his attention. This was a foreigner that bore the best intentions as far as he knew, but its aura had lightened in color slightly. That was generally the shade of apprehension and fear. At the same time, the foreign aura was being surrounded by several other malevolent forces, their inner fires tinged red._

_As any aura-user learned quickly, blue was the neutral color of aura and generally indicated safe intents. Red symbolized anger, hate, and corruption. One light blue aura was being surrounded by six red ones. That didn't bode well._

_The Lucario sighed and stood up slowly, stretching his stunted muscles. Of _course_ those idiots had to interrupt his careful meditation, and purely by being jerks this time. He wasn't familiar with them, but they entered and exited the forest frequently enough to be called regulars. He'd put a few in their places before, but they never learned, it seemed. He hadn't told anybody the particulars of aura, so they probably thought he wasn't watching._

_He opened his eyes and looked to the northeast, where the auras were emanating from. There was a small pocket of caves in that direction where a lot of Rock- and Ground-type Pokemon resided, as well as some unscrupulous types. The foreigner had probably wandered unknowingly into the most dangerous part of the forest._

_Growling in frustration, he ran off, barely feeling the grass and pinecones beneath his feet. If he reached his target quickly, maybe he'd prevent it from being painted on the ground (which the Lucario had seen before, and it wasn't pretty). He leaped forward and kicked off a tree to save time in changing directions._

_The blue aura had grown even lighter. Terror was beginning to set in as the red auras drew closer. They were a quarter of a mile away now._

That should be enough time, _the Lucario thought._

_He spotted a Butterfree through the trees to his right. The butterfly Pokemon turned its large eyes to him quizzically. "Hi! You're in an awful lot of a hurry."_

_"Yeah, I'll explain later," the Lucario grunted as he blew by._

_The Butterfree was a very curious sort and epitomized the joy and innocence of her species. He'd enjoyed a lot of talks with her and even saved her Caterpie son from a watery fate last month, but there was honestly no sating her curiosity._

_And he'd have to survive this upcoming ordeal if he wanted to share anything with her at all. He'd never fought six opponents at a time before. He was pretty sure he could do it if worse came to worst, but the room for error was pretty big._

_He saw a group of Pokemon gathered in a bumpy clearing ahead of him. No trees grew in this section of the forest for a hundred-foot radius or so, instead replaced by rocky bumps and cave entrances. He preferred fighting in the shelter of the woods, where his speed and the trees would work to his advantage._

_The Pokemon turned to him as he approached and slowed to a stop. From left to right, he counted a Hypno, a Pinsir, an Ursuring, a Sceptile, a Shiftry, and a Luxray. They were all very intimidating Pokemon, but the only ones he was really concerned with were the last three. Those were all fast Pokemon, and Luxray could shoot lightning. Anything that shot lightning was way up there on his threat list._

_And, of course, there were six of these guys. Not very encouraging._

_At the center of the huddle, the only one with blue aura, was a Lopunny, a furry brown rabbit Pokemon with long ears and a typical loving bunny personality. This one was clearly female and stared at him, trembling._

_The Lucario glared at the Hypno. "What's going on?"_

_The Hypno turned to fully face him, defiance written in its expression. "Embracing nature. Isn't that what you Lucario are all about? Protecting the forest and dancing with fairies and whatnot?"_

_He hated it when people made those comparisons with his kind. "You have a skewed outlook on my species. Actually, you have a skewed everything. Your bulbous nose is slightly off-center, the white frilly stuff around your neck is atrocious, and your toenails would make a Grimer want to vomit." Before the Hypno could retort, the Lucario continued, "You haven't caught me in the best of moods, so explain what you're doing and say it quickly. You've interrupted a delicate system my day is based around."_

_The Shiftry answered for him. "Pokemon are given powers like no other for a reason. It's a true crime to hide them and bow your head to another. Pokemon like Lopunny - " He inclined his head toward the shaking rabbit Pokemon - "are pitiful excuses for fighters. She won't even settle for a basic sparring match. A dignified forest such as this has no room for cowards and weaklings."_

_The Lucario hated Shiftry. They were greedy, brooding, malevolent, and unnecessarily violent. He'd heard nice ones existed, but so far he hadn't met one. "So in other words, you're going to beat this girl up because she's not up-to-par with the forest's self-appointed law. That's incredibly obtuse." He glanced at the Hypno. "Speaking of obtuse, you don't even know what that means, do you?"_

_The Shiftry bared his teeth. "You're not quite accurate. I suppose all that sitting on stumps and letting the world pass you by has dried out what you have left for brains. No, this girl has merely arrived at an opportune time for me. I trust you recall our last encounter, correct?"_

_"Of course. I buried you in the ground like the plant you are and snapped off the end of the broomstick you call your nose. It was quite funny, actually. So you enjoyed the experience so much that you want me to do it again so soon?"_

_The Sceptile lowered its head. "So that's what this is really about. Fine by me."_

_The Shiftry spat on the ground. "I do believe in a new order for this forest, and the Lopunny is not a part of it. But I'm also less ignorant than you take me for."_

_"That doesn't say much for _your_ intellect."_

_"I know of your whole aura-sensing ability, and I knew you'd come to save this girl like the witless hero you try to be. I want revenge for the last time we met, even if it comes through six of us. You stand in the way of nature, and I remove all obstacles from my path."_

_"I have no idea what's going on," the Lopunny squeaked._

_The Lucario popped his neck on both sides. "Don't need to. Sit tight for a moment while I chop down a few useless trees."_

_"Is that our cue?" the Hypno asked._

_The Shiftry nodded once. The Pinsir instantly leaped for the Lucario's head, widening its spiked mandibles in preparation. The Lucario ducked underneath, reacting on impulse, and flipped backwards, kicking the Pinsir and flinging it into a tree far behind him. The Pinsir's mandibles gored into the tree and left him hanging there, shaking uselessly._

_The Lucario met with the Sceptile as soon as he returned to his feet. The lizard Pokemon had its arm raised, ready for a Leaf Blade, which was basically a giant paper cut and no more appealing. The Lucario lifted his hand in defense, deflecting the Leaf Blade with his spike. He sensed the Shiftry coming in from his right and spun around, letting the incoming enemy whiz by._

_The other Pokemon were surrounding him. He could sense their auras, and through it, their basic intentions. He turned his spin into a whirling kick and knocked the Ursuring to the side, then failed to duck in time as a huge electrical spark blasted him in the head and sent him rolling across the gravel. The Lucario landed on his feet, shaking off the pain, and readied himself for the next attack._

_The Sceptile jumped high into the air above him, another Leaf Blade prepared. The Lucario raised his hand and shot a blue fireball of aura, which collided with the Sceptile's abdomen and knocked it out of the air. Both the Shiftry and the Ursuring ran at him from the front, arms lifted to slash him open. Seeing their attacks well in advance, the Lucario lowered himself to the ground and spun with his leg outstretched, sweeping their legs out from underneath them. Before they hit the ground, he generated a pulse of aura from his body, sliding them across the rocky ground._

_Thirty feet to his left, he felt the Hypno attempting to stab into his mind with a Psychic attack. The Lucario smirked and jabbed back with his own mind, his power backed with aura. The Hypno recoiled and clutched his forehead, not expecting the counterattack. Meditation was boring, but that was one of the techniques it had taught him._

_Behind him, the Pinsir pulled itself free from the tree trunk, tottered for a second, and dove at the Lucario, mandibles stretched wide again. That was one nice thing about fighting undisciplined ruffians, at least. They were usually stupid enough to try the same move over and over. Feeling it was only polite, the Lucario dispatched the Pinsir with the same trick he'd used last time, flipping forwards and tossing the Pinsir over his head using his feet._

_A bolt of lightning streaked toward his head, filling the air with a crackling sound and raising the hair on the Lucario's body. After landing on his toes, he bent forward, letting the electricity pass overhead. As the Hypno lunged for him from behind, the Lucario appeared before the Luxray in a flash, drove his fist into the cat's chest, and turned to face the Hypno. The Luxray crashed to a halt on the gravel a second later._

_The Lucario grunted. "Still prepared to fight for your brand new order? Listen, they don't call me the forest's guardian for nothing. I'm going pretty light on you so far, so don't upset me. More than you have, anyway."_

_The Lopunny straightened up behind him. "Uhh..."_

_The Lucario nodded once. "Thank you for the deep sentiments, lady. I'll take it to heart." He looked over his shoulder at her. "Actually, shouldn't you be running or something?"_

_She swallowed. "Not after all you're doing for me."_

Peculiar woman,_ he thought. Pushing it out of his mind, he ran back into the fight, already getting tired of the relentless swarm of opponents. Deciding he was past holding back, he leaped into the air, flipping over the Ursuring and charging up an Aura Sphere, releasing it when it had completed its growth. The blue orb crashed into the bear Pokemon, sending it face-first into the ground. He created another aura shockwave on landing, punching his fist into the ground and flinging the Hypno and Pinsir into the air. While they were still in the air, he kicked the Pinsir from the right and knocked it into the Hypno, sending the cluster off into the woods._

_Judging from the auras, those three were out from the fight. On his left, the Sceptile hurled a group of large yellow pods at him, charging in for a tactical strike. The Lucario stepped out of the way, grabbed a pod in midair, and casually threw it into the ground by the Sceptile's feet. As the green lizard soared by, the Lucario threw his elbow into the Sceptile's jaw, flipping it over backwards with a loud crack._

_Four down, two to go. The Luxray roared at him, shooting another stream of lightning at him. Feeling like he should intimidate the Shiftry, the Lucario filled his right hand with aura, turned, and dove into the lightning blast, shredding the attack like it was water. He released the aura when he reached the Luxray's head, and with a series of blows, knocked it tumbling back into the trees._

_The Shiftry ground its teeth on his right loud enough for a grinding sound to permeate the air. "Even with six of us, we were still tossed aside like a bunch of sticks?"_

_"I love that analogy." The Lucario held his flaming hand up. "What should I snap off this time? Your nose has grown back, I see. I always thought this tree should have a few stumps, though."_

_The Shiftry swung its arms back and forth, generating massive gusts of wind with its leafy fans. The grass bent toward the Lucario as the gales raged forth, billowing the trees behind him and drowning out all other sound with its howling. The Lucario stood firm, glaring at the Shiftry. This was easier than he thought. He pointed his finger at the Shiftry and released the aura in his hand. The blue ball cut through the wind and pounded the dark Pokemon in the gut. With a groan, the Shiftry fell over backwards._

_The wind died down, slowly settling the trees back to their original positions. Leaves fell over the Lucario, almost as if the forest was congratulating him for kicking these guys' butts. None of the Pokemon with the red aura moved except to breathe. Guess the mission was accomplished._

_He walked back to the Lopunny, who hadn't moved an inch while the battle went on. "Are you alright? Looked like those guys gave you quite a scare."_

_The Lopunny smiled. "They did. I still don't know what's going on, but...thank you. You didn't have to do that."_

_The Lucario rubbed the back of his head. "Well, in a manner of speaking, yeah I did. Come on, let's get out of this section of the woods. This spot is notorious for resident jerks."_

_He placed his hand behind her left arm, gently guiding her away. She looked back at the wreckage for a moment, then sighed and walked with him. "So, what's your name?"_

_"Cascade. I was born in this forest."_

_"Cascade?" The Lopunny grinned again. "Yes, you said something about being the guardian of the forest. My name is Heart."_

_"Nice to meet you, Heart, though I wish we'd done it under better circumstances." Cascade massaged the side of his head where the Luxray had nailed him with an electric attack. That was the only real injury he had sustained in the fight, and the pain would go away soon._

_Heart looked at him and frowned. "Are you okay? It looked like you got hit pretty hard there..."_

_"No, it's nothing. Trust me, I've had worse." He paused for a moment to decide which direction to go in, then walked left past some shrubs, Heart following him. "So what are you doing in the forest, anyway? If the skirmish back there was anything to judge by, you don't know your way around here. New to the area?"_

_Heart nodded. "Actually, I'm on a bit of a pilgrimage. In the mountains west of here, there are special stones that are said to glow when the moon and stars strike a certain alignment. That alignment is supposed to happen in around a week, and I figured I may not see something like this again, so...here I am."_

_Cascade stepped over a fallen log. "Yeah, I've heard something about that. 'The heavens reach their climax and the stones of the sky shine their joy.' Bit of an old legend passed down in the forest. Never seen it myself, but it sounds interesting."_

_"Really?" Heart was silent for a moment. "You know, you should come, too. Neither of us have seen it, and one look at you tells me you don't get out of this forest much."_

_Cascade laughed darkly. "Well, there's a reason for that. People get upset with me if I'm not there to bail them out when they get into trouble. I didn't choose to be the forest's guardian, it just wound up that way."_

_"But do you want to see the stones?"_

_Cascade thought about it. "Kind of. I'm not really into that mushy-gushy stuff, but, well..." He stopped and looked up through the trees for a second. "I have a responsibility to guard the forest. I do leave this place sometimes, but it's not for leisure. Deep down, though..."_

_Heart increased her pace to keep up with him. "I'm not going to force you into anything - not like I could, anyway. But you should think about it. Much of what people view as right and wrong is just a difference in perspectives."_

_They realigned their direction so they were heading west, where a group of small mountains were. Cascade sighed. "I've been thinking about what that Shiftry said, too. He may an arrogant blowhard, but he's more perceptive than he appears. Maybe I am just sitting on a stump and letting life pass me by."_

_"It's all up to you. Who says you don't have responsibilities somewhere else? Perhaps your talents would be put to better use traveling around and settling disputes everywhere. It's a matter of perspective."_

_"Hmm."_

_Cascade didn't respond to her after that, and she didn't press him further. He loved the forest and he was already certain he wasn't about to leave for good, but he couldn't deny he felt a sense of wanderlust. Meditation was boring. Adventure was exciting. There was a clear distinction, but Cascade couldn't shake off the responsibility aspect of it._

_It wasn't just about what others made of him. He grew up in a time where the forest was a more dangerous place and fights weren't uncommon. It wasn't a terrible life, but he'd seen more than his share of unwarranted brutality. He wanted to make the forest a pure place where anyone could come and go without fear of a mugging. And cocky as it sounded, he was the forest's best weapon. If he left, things could easily revert to their original violent state._

_They arrived at the forest's edge twenty minutes later, Cascade still deep in his thoughts. A wide, flat plain stretched on from there, broken by a tall silver mountain in the distance. Heart gazed at him somewhat sadly but continued walking when he stopped. When she had gone seven steps away, she turned back around. "Are you sure you don't want to come?"_

_Cascade stared at the ground between her feet. "I don't know. This isn't a decision that I can just make on the spot."_

_She cupped her chin with her hand. "I'll tell you what. If you don't come with me, I'll return to the forest after I've seen it myself, and I'll tell you all about it. That way you don't have to miss out entirely."_

_Cascade smiled wryly. "That would be nice."_

_Heart raised the corners of her mouth in a solemn grin. "Well...goodbye, then. Thank you for everything you did back there."_

_"Heh, no problem. It's part of the job, remember?"_

_She turned and continued walking toward the mountain. "And I promise I'll come back! I'll tell you all about it!"_

_Cascade felt his shoulders sag. Why couldn't he have more time to think about this? Moving quickly, it would take him around a week to make it to the mountain and back, and then what? If something happened in the forest while he was gone, many of the Pokemon would view him as a coward. In fact, if he had neglected his duty as guardian today, Heart might have gotten herself killed._

_But Heart was right about one thing. Cascade had seen so many useless fights started because one Pokemon infringed on another Pokemon's so-called moral code, and in the end, it really didn't matter. Right and wrong existed, Cascade knew, but not in the rigid manner so many held. Cascade ate food with his toes occasionally. Some would consider that a grievous offense. He considered it fine-dining when his arms were sore._

_Much as he hated it, conflict was one of the world's natural laws. Even if it was all stamped out in one lifetime, it would return in another. If Cascade left the forest, his home would become...normal. So was that a good thing or bad?_

_Shaking his head, Cascade wandered back into the forest, wishing big decisions didn't have to be nearly so complicated. As he made his way back to his meditation stump, he wondered why he suddenly cared about the opinions of others now._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Bit of a big update going on. First of all, three of my fanfics are being indefinitely cancelled (don't worry, this isn't one of them). More importantly, I'm working on a novel. Not a fanfic, not an internet story. A novel, as in a book you hold in your hands and read. It certainly isn't going to be published anytime soon, but keep an eye out for The Farewell's Chains in the following months. More information about the above items is in my profile.

As always, thank you for reading. The story only gets more interesting from here, so don't go away just yet.


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